Most people can improve their health by taking simple measures such as not smoking, eating healthily, and exercising regularly. Once you've been diagnosed with kidney failure you'll be referred to a medical team that specializes in the care of renal patients. The nephrologists (doctors who specialize in kidneys), renal nurses, and other medical personnel will monitor you closely. You will have regular appointments at your physician's office or a Dialysis center. Blood and urine tests will be done to determine the function of your kidneys.
When your kidneys have started to fail, waste products accumulate in your blood. Creatinine is one of the waste products that will be monitored on a regular basis. The creatinine level in your blood indicates how well or how poorly your kidneys are working. Your kidneys may be working well enough for you to manage your kidney failure just with medication and regular visits to your nephrologist.
Diabetes and high blood pressure are conditions that can lead to kidney failure. If you are diabetic watch your blood glucose levels and blood pressure, and keep them under control.
If high blood pressure is the cause of your kidney damage, good blood pressure control can slow or prevent further damage. It can also reduce the risk of damage to your heart and other body organs.
As the kidneys continue to fail, complications such as anemia and renal bone disease may develop, in which case your doctor will discuss a treatment plan based on the results of your laboratory tests. Ask your doctor to help you understand your test results. This is an important step to better health.
How long the early stage of kidney failure lasts depends on how much kidney function you have left when you are diagnosed, and how well you respond to medication and diet therapy. With regular laboratory monitoring, your doctor will be able to predict how your kidneys are responding to treatment.
Chronic kidney disease often progresses from early stage to complete failure. This is known as end-stage renal failure (ESRF) or end-stage renal disease (ESRD). There is currently no cure for this condition and the damage done to the kidneys is irreversible. The medical treatment for complete failure is to replace the lost functions of the kidneys by dialysis or by a kidney transplant.
Dialysis is an artificial process of filtering wastes and removing fluid from the body. There are two kinds: peritoneal dialysis and hemodialysis.
A healthy kidney transplanted from a donor functions like a normal kidney. Not everyone is eligible for a kidney transplant and there is a long waiting list for suitable donor kidneys. Kidneys are available from a living donor (who may either be related or non-related to the recipient) or a cadaver (a person who has died). A successful transplant provides much more efficient kidney function than dialysis, so patients feel better and have more energy.
Because of improvements in all the treatment options available, kidney patients today can enjoy an active lifestyle, take care of themselves and feel productive.
Some patients and families may choose to refuse treatment. If left untreated, kidney failure will eventually lead to death.
Early stage kidney failure
Appropriate treatment and management in the early stages of kidney failure, also known as chronic kidney failure, may slow or even stop the usual progress to complete failure (end-stage renal failure or ESRF or end-stage renal disease ESRD).
When your kidneys start to fail waste products and extra fluid will accumulate in your blood. A measurement of the amount of creatinine, one of these waste products, clearly indicates the extent of kidney failure.
By carefully managing your diet you can minimize the accumulation of waste products and extra fluids in your blood, and thus help your kidneys. By paying attention to what you drink you can do some of the work that healthy kidneys do in maintaining the right fluid balance in your body. A dietitian will advise you on changes you may need to make to your diet and fluid intake.
Diabetes and high blood pressure are conditions that can lead to kidney failure but are readily treated. If the kidneys continue to fail, side effects such as anemia and renal bone disease may develop.
When kidney failure is due to nephritis the need for dialysis can sometimes be delayed. This is because some types of nephritis are caused by the body's immune system attacking the kidneys—medicines such as steroids, which make the immune system less effective, can sometimes help to delay or even stop the damage.
Early stage kidney failure may last several years for some patients, while for others it may only last a few weeks. This will depend on the cause of your kidney failure, how much kidney function you have left when you are diagnosed, and how well you respond to the medication and dietary changes recommended by your Dialysis center. During this period of monitoring or predialysis, your kidney function will be determined by regular blood and urine tests.
"It took a long time to adjust. It was all such a shock. But, after an unsuccessful kidney transplant a year later, I realized I had to learn to cope with dialysis. It's now become a way of life." - Linda, Edinburgh
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