Hello, I recently had a painful varicocele, where at the recommendation of an online post, it said to take magnesium sulfate or epsom salts (which have magnesium sulfate), to dilate vessels, to then try to unblock the testicular varicocele. So I did, in my desperation to try to relieve the pain, but I foolishly miscalculated the amount of epsom salts to ingest, and took 15 teaspoons of it, where the next day, I felt very sick, back pain, headache, feeling very cold, muscle cramping, and even a sensation that I was going to pass out. Obviously, I took myself to an ER, and low and behold, after doing a blood test, my GFR was at 55 and my creatinine at 1.49. They put me on an IV, but then discharged me. I began watching what I was eating, as I noticed if I ate anything too heavy, around 6 hours later I began to get back pain and headache. A few days later I began to feel better, but then about a week later I began to feel sick again, with back pain and headache again. I did get some bloodwork done again a few days ago, and my GFR has gone up to 68, and my creatinine has gone down to 1.39. So, because I am still feeling pain, 3 weeks after consuming that high dose of epsom salts, I’m very concerned, so my questions are, 1. Could I have possibly permanently injured my kidneys with such a high intake of epsom salts, or can I expect to make a full recovery? 2. And if so, what is a reasonable expectation of recovery time from an acute kidney injury in my particular case. 3. Also, I’d like to know what type of injury could be possible with such a high intake of epsom salts, could I have introduced kidney stones, could I get introduced a certain type of damage to the kidney, could there be other organs involved that I’m not considering when it comes to digestion of epsom salts that could’ve been harmed by it? 4. Also, would the body have expelled all those epsom salts already, or would it have accumulated somewhere, maybe in the kidneys, or somewhere else in body where it would take a long time for the body to get rid of it? 5. And, other than bloodwork, what tests could I conduct to check the health of my kidneys? I’ve never had kidney problems in the past. 6. Any foods I should avoid while I heal? I’ve been abstaining from meats and sticking to fruits and vegetables. I will never again make a foolish mistake such as this, I learned my lesson and am alive to tell the tale. I hope I get better, and not worse. I’m sad and wanna kick myself for being such a fool.

Epsom salts and magnesium sulfate can both cause dehydration and severe diarrhea, but are generally not directly toxic to the kidneys. I am unable to make a specific diagnosis in regards to your kidney disease, based on the information that you present. If this is dehydration, the kidneys should be able to recover very quickly. Hence, the only thing you can do is to continue to monitor the recovery and see if they do recover. I suggest that you continue to consult with your physician.