Diseases are common, some are curable, some are incurable, some are deadly, fatal and threat to life as well. I would like to give one small and brief write-up about the kidney failure based on my own personal experience with little knowledge.
Though modern medical technologies, expertises are available and used to treat or diagnosis, result of the same is minimal and sometimes Nil. Medical institutions, doctors, laboratories claim that the result is 100% cure but according to me it is wrong notion and side effects of the same is very much high, severe and it’s follow up treatment is continued, hectic and life time with huge amount spent on it without any permanent solution. However medical field do not agree with this.
The painful experience of the same can be felt by the people, who are really undergoing this painful ordeals or have felt the experiences of all these painful situations and for the rest of the people it is a fun and joke. Under the present scenario, the people with abundant money or with medical insurance/claim a sort of alternative can only survive the situation and meet the exorbitant expenses of medical treatment and for rest of the people it is really a nightmare and pain in the ass.However they have to struggle for their very existence in the society with their untold stories.
Though our government is announcing so many schemes for the treatment of such dreadful diseases and implementing in government hospitals and very few in some private hospitals, benefits are available only for finger count people and service rendered is hopeless. Most of the government’s benefits, schemes do not reach to common people at all.
Visiting government hospitals is another head ache. Everybody is willing to receive a good treatment but their economic condition does not permit them to do so. Only rich, affluent people can afford to spend the money as they wish and get the required treatment in good hospitals.
In order to receive proper treatment and attention, definitely one must rely on some private hospitals but there medical treatment expenses pile up to in lacs, which common man cannot sustain. If the government implements its schemes on humanitarian ground in private hospitals for such fatal diseases with some reasonable price structure, it would be a great help and boon for the poor patients
Among the many fatal and life threatening diseases, now a day’s more common life threatening diseases are the Kidney failure and cancer. But according to some people, these diseases can be cured in the initial stage. May be to certain extent, it might be true but patient too must evince some determination and dedication along with their treatment.
Although advanced technologies, medical expertises, sciences are available now in the medical field for the treatment, diagnosis of the same, the end result is subject to the condition of patient’s destiny, fate. Because chances of survival are very bleak and remote in spite of attending and given proper treatment after spending hefty amount.
10 Symptoms of Kidney Diseases:
A. Changes in Urination
Kidneys make urine, so when the kidneys are failing, the urine may change. How?
1. You may have to get up at night to urinate.
2. Urine may be foamy or bubbly.
3. You may urinate more often, or in greater amounts than usual, with pale urine.
4. You may urinate less often, or in smaller amounts than usual, with dark-colored urine.
5. Your urine may contain blood.
6. You may feel pressure or have difficulty urinating.
B. Swelling
Failing kidneys don’t remove extra fluid, which builds up in your body causing swelling in the legs, ankles, feet, face, and/or hands.
C. Fatigue
Healthy kidneys make a hormone called erythropoietin (a-rith’-ro-po’-uh-tin), or EPO, that tells your body to make oxygen-carrying red blood cells. As the kidneys fail, they make less EPO. With fewer red blood cells to carry oxygen, your muscles and brain tire very quickly. This is anemia, and it can be treated.
D. Skin Rash/Itching
Kidneys remove wastes from the bloodstream. When the kidneys fail, the build-up of wastes in your blood can cause severe itching.
E. Metallic Taste in Mouth/Ammonia Breath
A build-up of wastes in the blood (called uremia) can make food taste different and cause bad breath. You may also notice that you stop liking to eat meat, or that you are losing weight because you just don’t feel like eating.
F. Nausea and Vomiting
A severe build-up of wastes in the blood (uremia) can also cause nausea and vomiting. Loss of appetite can lead to weight loss.
G. Shortness of Breath
Trouble catching your breath can be related to the kidneys in two ways. First, extra fluid in the body can build up in the lungs. And second, anemia (a shortage of oxygen-carrying red blood cells) can leave your body oxygen-starved and short of breath.
H. Feeling Cold
Anemia can make you feel cold all the time, even in a warm room.
I. Dizziness and Trouble Concentrating
Anemia related to kidney failure means that your brain is not getting enough oxygen. This can lead to memory problems, trouble with concentration, and dizziness.
J. Leg/Flank Pain
The most common causes of CKD do not cause any pain. And, much of the pain that is near the kidneys is not caused by a kidney problem. But some people who have CKD do have pain.
Some people with kidney problems may have pain in the upper back (where the kidneys are) or on the same side as the affected kidney.
⦁ Polycystic kidney disease (PKD), which causes large, fluid-filled cysts on the kidneys and sometimes the liver, can cause pain.
⦁ Kidney infections and kidney stones can cause severe pain, often in spasms.
⦁ Bladder infections can cause burning when you urinate.
⦁ People who have medullary sponge kidney say it is painful.
Kidney Disease: Causes
Your kidneys may be small, but they perform many vital functions that help maintain your overall health, including filtering waste and excess fluids from your blood. Serious kidney disease may lead to complete kidney failure and the need for dialysis treatments or a kidney transplant to stay alive. While effective treatments are available for many kidney diseases, people are sometimes unaware that kidney disease can often be prevented. The following are the ten major causes of kidney disease.
In the United States the two leading causes of kidney failure, also called end stage kidney disease or ESRD, are diabetes (also called Type 2, or adult onset diabetes) and high blood pressure. When these two diseases are controlled by treatment, the associated kidney disease can often be prevented or slowed down.
Many effective drugs are available to treat high blood pressure. In addition, healthy lifestyle changes, such as losing weight and regular exercise, often help to control, and may even help to prevent, high blood pressure.
Careful control of blood sugar in diabetics helps to prevent such complications as kidney disease, coronary heart disease and stroke. When diabetics have associated high blood pressure, special drugs called angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors may help to protect their kidney function.
The third leading cause of end stage kidney disease in the U.S. is glomerulonephritis, a disease that damages the kidneys’ filtering units, called the glomeruli. In many cases, the cause of this disease is not known, but some cases may be inherited and others may be triggered by an infection.
Some of the other diseases that may affect the kidneys include infections, kidney stones and inherited diseases such as polycystic kidney disease. The kidneys can also be damaged by overuse of some over-the-counter pain killers and by taking illegal drugs such as heroin. Some of these diseases can be cured. In other cases, treatments can help to slow the disease and prolong life.
End stage kidney disease occurs when about 90 percent of kidney function has been lost. People with kidney failure may experience nausea, vomiting, weakness, fatigue, confusion, difficulty concentrating and loss of appetite. It can be diagnosed by blood and urine tests.
What is Kidney?
Kidneys help filter waste, excess fluid and toxins from your blood. They are also important for blood for blood cell production and bone health.
The kidneys are two organs located in your midsection on either side of your spine in the middle of your back, just above the waist. They clean your blood, keep the balance of salt and minerals in your blood, and help control blood pressure.
When your kidneys are damaged, waste products and fluid can build up in your body, causing swelling in your ankles, vomiting, weakness, poor sleep, and shortness of breath. If you don’t treat them, diseased kidneys may eventually stop working completely. Loss of kidney function is a serious — and potentially fatal — condition.
If kidneys don’t work properly, harmful substances build up in the body, blood can rise, and too much fluid can collect in the body’s tissues, which leads to swelling, called edema.
If your kidneys fail, you will need dialysis or a kidney transplant to take over their job.
What Is Kidney Dialysis?
Kidney dialysis is a life-support treatment that uses a special machine to filter harmful wastes, salt, and excess fluid from your blood. This restores the blood to a normal, healthy balance. Dialysis replaces many of the kidney’s important functions.
There are different types of kidney dialysis, including:
⦁ Hemodialysis. Blood is filtered using a dialyzer and dialysis machine.
⦁ Peritoneal dialysis. Blood is filtered inside the body after the abdomen is filled with a special cleaning solution.
Haemodialysis and the Kidneys
During haemodialysis, you will be hooked up to a machine that takes over the kidneys’ job of filtering blood. Before the first session, the doctor will need to create an entrance into one of your blood vessels so your body can be connected to the filtering machine during each visit. This is called a vascular access. It is a place on your body where blood can be removed and then returned. This can be done by:
⦁ Connecting an ⦁ artery to a vein to create a larger blood vessel area, called a fistula
⦁ Joining (grafting) an artery and vein together using a soft plastic tube
⦁ Inserting a thin plastic tube into a large vein in the neck or groin area of the leg; this type of access is temporary.
⦁
You may need temporary or permanent access. The type of access and how long you need it depends on your individual condition. Experts recommend creating an access weeks or months before your first dialysis session so it has a chance to heal properly before using it.
During a haemodialysis session, your blood flows a little bit at a time through a special filter inside the machine. The filter removes wastes and extra fluids from your blood, but retains the proper balance of minerals such as potassium and sodium. Once the blood is cleaned, it is returned to the body.
Patients often need dialysis treatments several times a week. How long each haemodialysis session lasts depends on:
⦁ How well your kidneys work
⦁ How much fluid you gained since your last dialysis session
⦁ How much waste has gathered in your blood since your last dialysis session
⦁ Your ⦁ weight
⦁ The type of haemodialysis machine being used
Healthy kidneys:
⦁ Maintain a balance of water and minerals, such as sodium, ⦁ potassium, and phosphorus, in your blood
⦁ Remove waste by-products from your blood after digestion, muscle activity, and exposure to chemicals or medications
⦁ Make ⦁ rennin, an enzyme that helps regulate blood pressure
⦁ Make erythropoietin, which stimulates red blood cell production
⦁ Make an active form of ⦁ vitamin D, needed for bone health
What Causes Acute Kidney Injury?
Doctors call the sudden loss of kidney function “acute kidney injury” or “acute renal failure” (ARF). It has three main causes:
⦁ Lack of blood flow to the kidneys
⦁ Direct damage to the kidneys themselves
⦁ Urine backed up in the kidneys
These can happen when you:
⦁ Have a traumatic injury with blood loss
⦁ Are dehydrated
⦁ Go into shock during a severe infection called ⦁ sepsis
⦁ Have a blocked urine flow, which can happen with an ⦁ enlarged prostate
⦁ Take specific drugs or are around certain toxins
Get complications with a pregnancy, such as ⦁ eclampsia and pre-eclampsia, or related HELLP Syndrome
Marathon runners and other athletes who don’t drink enough fluids while competing in long-distance endurance events may get acute renal failure because of a sudden breakdown of muscle tissue. This releases a large amount of protein into the bloodstream called myoglobin that can damage the kidneys.
What Causes Chronic Kidney Disease?
Kidneys that don’t work well for longer than 3 months are called chronic kidney disease (CKD). It’s dangerous, because you may not have any symptoms until a lot of damage, which often can’t be repaired, has happened.
Shekar Moily
