Kidney Care

Kidney disease occurs when the kidneys become damaged and are unable to function properly, causing waste products and fluids to build up in a person’s body. Diabetes and high blood pressure are the most common causes of kidney disease.

Chronic kidney disease occurs when damage to the kidneys continues to get worse, causing the dysfunction of the organ to progress over time. Severe chronic kidney disease symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, anemia, shortness of breath, seizures, changes in urine output and pain or pressure in the chest can be an indication that a person is experiencing kidney failure – the last stage of chronic kidney disease.

Treatment for kidney disease complications may include dietary changes as well as medications to control high blood pressure and cholesterol, treat anemia, relieve swelling and protect a person’s bones. If chronic kidney disease has progressed to end-stage kidney failure, dialysis or a kidney transplant becomes necessary.

When a person experiences kidney failure, their kidneys have lost the ability to filter waste from their blood, and they will not survive without dialysis or a kidney transplant. In addition to chronic kidney disease, a sudden loss of blood flow to a person’s kidneys can also prompt kidney failure.  Kidney failure may be caused by heart disease, liver complications, dehydration, severe burns, allergic reactions, severe infections such as sepsis. It could also be caused by cancer, blood clots, heavy metal buildup, drug and alcohol use, vasculitis, homolytic uremic syndrome, or scleroderma.  

There are five different types of kidney failure:

• Acute prerenal kidney failure: Caused by insufficient blood flow to the kidneys, this type of kidney failure is usually curable once the cause of the decreased blood flow is determined
• Acute intrinsic kidney failure: This type of kidney failure is usually the result of a direct trauma to the kidneys, such as an accident or other physical impact. It can also result from toxin overload or a lack of oxygen to the kidneys, also known as renal ischemia, which can be caused by severe bleeding, shock, renal blood vessel obstruction, or glomerulonephritis
• Chronic prerenal kidney failure: When blood flow to the kidneys is limited for a long period of time, they begin to shrink and lose function, resulting in this form of failure
• Chronic intrinsic kidney failure: When a direct trauma to the kidneys causes long-term damage, intrinsic kidney disease can become chronic
• Chronic post-renal kidney failure: A long-term blockage of the urinary tract can prevent urination and cause pressure, resulting in this form of chronic kidney damage

Dialysis is a treatment that eliminates toxins and excess fluid from the body when the kidneys have failed.  The two most common types of dialysis are Hemodialysis and Peritoneal dialysis.

In the process of hemodialysis, a patient’s blood enters a dialyzer machine, is cleaned over the course of 3-5 hours, and then is returned to the patient. This is done several times each week. 

Peritoneal dialysis uses a solution that is sent into a patient’s abdomen (peritoneal cavity) where it absorbs waste and then is released into a bag after an hour or hour and a half. This process occurs multiple times per day. 

Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) is an advanced form of dialysis that continuously runs 24 hours/day for a gentler treatment. This can be used in the ICU where patients are in more critical condition.