What is Chronic kidney disease?
Chronic kidney disease (CKD), also called chronic kidney failure, involves a gradual loss of kidney function. Firstly, there have been several questions on how a kidney is damaged? In addition, your kidneys filter wastes and excess fluids from your blood, which are then removed in your urine. Therefore, Advanced chronic kidney disease can cause dangerous levels of fluid, electrolytes, and wastes to build up in your body.
Indeed, you might have few signs or symptoms in the early stages of chronic kidney disease in the early stages. However, you might not realize that you have kidney disease until the condition is advanced.
Furthermore, the treatment for chronic kidney disease focuses on slowing the progression of kidney damage, usually by controlling the cause. Moreover, controlling the cause might not keep kidney damage from progressing. Equally, Chronic kidney disease can progress to end-stage kidney failure, which is fatal without artificial filtering (dialysis) or a kidney transplant.
Symptoms of chronic kidney disease
In addition, the signs and symptoms of chronic kidney disease develop over time if kidney damage progresses slowly. Secondly, the loss of kidney function can cause a build-up of fluid or body waste, or electrolyte problems. Finally, depending on how severe it is, loss of kidney function can cause:- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Loss of appetite
- Fatigue and weakness
- Sleep problems
- Urinating more or less
- Decreased mental sharpness
- Muscle cramps
- Swelling of feet and ankles
- Dry, itchy skin
- High blood pressure (hypertension) that’s difficult to control
- Shortness of breath, if fluid builds up in the lungs
- Chest pain, if fluid builds up around the lining of the heart
When to see a doctor
In general, it is important to book an appointment with your doctor if you have signs or symptoms of kidney disease. Nevertheless, early detection might help prevent kidney disease from progressing to kidney failure.
If you have a medical condition that increases your risk of kidney disease, your doctor may monitor your blood pressure and kidney function with urine and blood tests during office visits. To sum up, ask your doctor whether these tests are necessary for you.
Chronic kidney disease Complications
Likewise, Chronic kidney disease can affect almost every part of your body. Potential complications include:
- Fluid retention, which could lead to swelling in your arms and legs, high blood pressure, or fluid in your lungs (pulmonary edema)
- A sudden rise in potassium levels in your blood (hyperkalemia), could impair your heart’s function and can be life-threatening
- Anemia
- Heart disease
- Weak bones and an increased risk of bone fractures
- Decreased sex drive, erectile dysfunction, or reduced fertility
- Damage to your central nervous system, which can cause difficulty concentrating, personality changes, or seizures
- Decreased immune response, which makes you more vulnerable to infection
- Pericarditis is an inflammation of the sac-like membrane that envelops your heart (pericardium).
- Pregnancy complications that carry risks for the mother and the developing fetus
- Irreversible damage to your kidneys (end-stage kidney disease), eventually requiring either dialysis or a kidney transplant for survival.
Risk factor
Factors that can increase your risk of chronic kidney disease include:
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- Heart (cardiovascular) disease
- Smoking
- Obesity
- Being Black, Native American, or Asian American
- Family history of kidney disease
- Abnormal kidney structure
- Older age
- Frequent use of medications that can damage the kidneys
Prevention of Chronic kidney disease
To reduce your risk of developing kidney disease:
- Follow instructions on over-the-counter medications. Using nonprescription pain relievers, such as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others), and acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) without a prescription, can cause major kidney damage. Always follow the instructions on the package. When you take too many pain relievers for a long time, it could lead to kidney damage.
- Maintain a healthy weight. If you’re at a healthy weight, maintain it by being physically active most days of the week. If you need to lose weight, talk with your doctor about strategies for healthy weight loss.
- Don’t smoke. Cigarette smoking can damage your kidneys and make existing kidney damage worse. If you’re a smoker, talk to your doctor about strategies for quitting. Support groups, counseling, and medications can all help you to stop.
- Manage your medical conditions with your doctor’s help. If you have diseases or conditions that increase your risk of kidney disease, work with your doctor to control them. Ask your doctor about tests to look for signs of kidney damage.
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