Natural Health Care

Archive for the ‘Renal Disease’ Category

When diabetes affects the kidney: therapies that come to the rescue of renal function

When someone is diagnosed with diabetes one must be aware of how important it is to control the disease. If this is not achieved, it is possible that over time this condition affect other organs such as eyes, heart, nerves and kidneys. Regarding the latter, it is important to know that diabetes is the leading cause of what is known as chronic renal failure: it is estimated which is responsible for 45 percent of cases of kidney failure. Imagine the impact it causes, because the world has about 171 million people with diabetes!

So you can understand it better, renal failure or renal failure occurs when the kidneys stop functioning properly or stop working altogether. The kidneys are two organs of the fist-sized, bean-shaped, located in the middle of the back, which play a vital role for the body, filter and purify the blood, that is, keep it chemically balanced. Read the rest of this entry »

When To Call a Professional

If you have diabetes, high blood pressure or other conditions that put you at risk of end-stage renal disease, you should have regular checkups with blood and urine tests to measure kidney function. When blood tests reveal a reduction in renal function or protein in the urine, your doctor should refer you to a kidney specialist (nephrologist). Call your doctor if you notice a decrease in urine or other symptoms of end stage renal disease, especially if you know you have kidney disease or risk factors. Read the rest of this entry »

The two treatments for end-stage renal disease are dialysis and kidney transplantation.

There are two types of dialysis:

- Hemodialysis is usually performed in a dialysis center three times a week, in sessions of three to four hours. During treatment, blood is removed from the veins, is filtered to remove waste products and re-insert it in the body.

- Peritoneal dialysis is done at home but it takes more time and should be done daily. During peritoneal dialysis, a sterile fluid is injected into the abdomen and gradually waste products accumulate in the fluid is drained several hours later. This process must be repeated four to five times a day, but can be programmed to perform during the night. Read the rest of this entry »

Diagnosis

Kidney disease is diagnosed by analyzing urine and measuring certain blood chemicals, such as creatinine and urea nitrogen. You may need other tests to determine the exact reason that caused the kidneys to stop functioning.

Duration

The end-stage renal disease is a condition for life if not performed a kidney transplant. Read the rest of this entry »

The symptoms of end-stage renal disease including weight loss, nausea or vomiting, malaise, fatigue, headache, hiccups, itching, decreased urination, bruising and bleeding easily produced, lethargy, difficulty breathing and convulsions. Symptoms may remain mild or nonexistent until kidney function drops to less than 20% of normal.

Generally, a person develops kidney disease for several years before the disease enters a terminal stage. A blood test will show high levels of creatinine and blood urea nitrogen, chemicals usually eliminated by the kidneys. Urgent dialysis is needed when you have developed one or more of the following problems: Read the rest of this entry »

The end-stage renal disease is a condition in which the kidneys do not function normally. (The word “renal” describes any condition related to the kidneys). Generally, in the end-stage renal disease, the kidneys work less than 15% of normal capacity. When this happens, they usually need dialysis (a mechanical process that performs the function of the kidney) or kidney transplantation.

In the U.S., more than one third of people with end-stage renal disease have diabetes. Kidney disease caused by diabetes is called diabetic nephropathy. Diabetes is the leading cause of end-stage renal disease. Up to 10% of all people with type 1 (insulin-dependent or juvenile) eventually develop end-stage renal disease. Kidney disease can also develop in people with type 2 (non insulin dependent or adult onset diabetes). Read the rest of this entry »