Renal Failure
Renal failure is characterized by an imbalance of fluid, salt and other minerals in the blood resulting from a retardation or stopping of renal functions.
When kidneys do not function properly, minerals and liquid wastes start accumulating in the body and when their levels increase, they may result in hazardous situations.
Primary symptoms of renal failure include a very low amount of urine when urinating, no urine at all, edema in legs and feet.
Symptoms of renal failure
At onset, renal failure may not present any symptoms or findings. However, as the performance capacity of kidneys decreases, fluid and electrolyte balance in the body starts to deteriorate. As renal failure progresses, weakness and shortness of breath start to present and swelling in the whole body but particularly in the feet and legs can occur. Since kidneys do not work at full capacity, urine may be very little or there may be none at all when in the bathroom. Other symptoms are loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting. Additionally, dizziness, anxiety, irritability and sleep problems may present. Other symptoms of renal failure can be enumerated as hiccups, muscle cramps, fasciculation, itching, chest pain, uncontrollable high blood pressure.
Symptoms of renal failure may vary from person to person or be mistaken for the symptoms of another disease.
Since kidneys are able to adjust to all kinds of situations, severe symptoms of renal failure may not be manifest until the kidneys have been irreversibly damaged.
For prevention, even if symptoms are mild, it is recommended that you seek a doctor's counsel and take the necessary tests as soon as you notice that something is not normal.
What are the types of renal failure?
Based on its causes, renal failure is analyzed in 5 main ways:
Renal failure caused by acute non-renal causes (prerenal): This type of failure occurs when the blood that is supplied to the kidneys decreases. When blood supply decreases, kidneys are not able to filter the blood properly. This type of renal failure is usually treatable when the cause that decreases blood supply is fixed.
Acute renal failure: This type of failure is seen after traumas that directly affect the kidneys. Accidents, blows to the kidneys, toxin overload, lack of oxygen supply to the kidneys, excess loss of blood, renal infections are among the causes of this type of renal failure.
Chronic renal failure caused by non-renal causes (prerenal): If acute prerenal renal failure goes untreated and the kidneys are not able to clean the blood, the situation turns into chronic prerenal renal failure. Kidneys start to shrink, and they lose their function with time.
Chronic renal failure: Blows and traumas to the kidneys and -if left untreated- renal infections may cause acute renal failure to turn into chronic renal failure.
Chronic postrenal renal failure: This type of renal failure occurs after a long occlusion, hindrance of the urinary tract, resulting in the incomplete elimination of urine from the body.
What are risk-increasing factors?
In addition to main failure causes, excess dehydration in a very short period of time, high blood pressure medications, heart failure, heart diseases, infections, liver failure, frequent use of some medications (aspirin, ibuprofen, Advil, etc.), lupus, bone marrow cancer, embolism due to cholesterol accumulation, excess consumption of alcohol, use of stimulant medications, infections of the blood vessels, severe burns causing fluid and protein loss and dehydration can be enumerated as additional causes.
How is it diagnosed?
Once they have learned what symptoms create discomfort in you, your doctor will conduct a physical examination. They may ask about some findings such as how often you urinate every day and whether you encounter any problems when you do, if you have any high blood pressure symptoms and other things you may not have noticed yourself but that they can remind you.
In order to make an exact diagnosis of renal failure, specific tests and procedures must be applied. Urine and blood tests will be helpful to your doctor to determine whether your kidneys do function as they should or not.
To determine whether there is a change in the size and shape of kidneys, your doctor may ask that imaging methods such as ultrasonography and / or tomography be used.
In some very rare cases, a kidney biopsy may be needed.
How is the disease treated?
Treatment changes based on the cause and stages of renal failure.
For instance: If renal failure is caused by a lack of blood supply, your doctor may recommend an intravenous liquid replacement.
If, on the contrary, renal failure occurs due to excess liquid accumulation, diuretics may be added to your prescription.
Specific medications may be recommended for bringing specific mineral (calcium, potassium, etc.) levels in the blood back to normal.
To eliminate toxins that have increased in the blood due to renal failure, dialysis treatment may be needed. Functioning as an artificial kidney, the dialyzer filters the blood, cleans toxins and resupplies the cleansed blood to your body.
How should we nourish ourselves?
During and after renal failure treatment, it is very important to eat healthy to protect the kidneys.
Your doctor may guide you to a nutrition specialist (dietician), to plan a diet that is appropriate to your case.
Patients who suffer from renal failure are usually recommended to consume less of foods that are rich in potassium (bananas, oranges, potatoes, spinach, tomatoes, etc.), to control the level of sodium they consume (canned foods, frozen foods, take-home foods, fast-food, etc.) and to limit their phosphor intake (milk, peanuts, dried nuts, etc.).
How to protect from renal failure?
To protect from renal failure, it is crucial that you stick to your diet. This will ensure you protect your kidneys from potentially harmful effects.
Reducing salt consumption, avoiding foods that are excessively fatty, limiting alcohol intake, decreasing or stopping smoking will help your kidneys function regularly. The more you consume these products, the more your kidneys will have to work to clean their impacts.
Kidneys that constantly function more than they should may eventually get exhausted. Hypertension and diabetes patients should make sure they use the medications prescribed by their doctor regularly and should keep their blood pressure and sugar levels under check to avoid experiencing renal failure in the future.
