Kidney Disorders: A Brief Overview (Causes, Types, Treatment, Symptoms & Prevention)

You must be aware that kidneys are one of the most crucial organs of the human body that require vigorous functioning for a healthy life. Having unhealthy kidneys can give rise to various health issues including life-threatening circumstances.

Healthy kidneys in the body perform the following functions:

• Filtering waste particles
• Draining excess water
• Removal of impurities from the blood
• Balancing the level of pH values, salt, and potassium in the body
• Generation of certain hormones for the regulation of blood pressure and to control the production of red blood cells
• Also triggers a kind of vitamin D for calcium absorption

What are the Factors that may lead to Kidney Disorders?

Unhealthy kidneys with disorders and diseases can happen when there are damages and malfunctioning in it.

A wide range of factors including diabetes, high blood pressure, an unhealthy diet, and certain chronic complications can give rise to such conditions.

In some cases, people with a history of having family members with kidney diseases have higher risks of facing kidney disease. Certain factors like age and race also have a role in increasing the chances of suffering from kidney disease.

What are the Types of Kidney Diseases?

Kidney disorder or disease can be broadly divided into two categories which are acute and chronic.

Acute Kidney Disease

Instantaneous damage in the kidneys is considered as acute kidney injury. It may last for a short period or may give rise to the long-term chronic disorder of kidneys.
Here are some of the main causes of such condition:

• Drugs, radioactive dyes, and intensive infection can damage normal kidney tissue
• Blocking of the urinal passage by kidney stones, enlarged prostate, or other factors
• People with chronic kidney disease who left it untreated

Chronic Kidney Disease

Chronic kidney disease is relatively common in people that hardly recovers over time. It can happen due to factors like high blood pressure and type-2 diabetes.

People having high blood pressure are at the risk of suffering from chronic kidney disease.

This is because it shoots pressure on tiny blood vessels called glomeruli, which performs the blood cleansing task. In long run, it minimizes kidney functions by damaging the vessels.

Diabetes is another factor that leads to chronic kidney disease by creating a disorder in the functioning of kidneys.

It is a condition in which the level of sugar increases in blood vessels that troubles the blood cleaning function of the kidneys. This results in kidney failure when filled with toxins.

What are the Available Treatment Options for Kidney Diseases?

Treatment of kidney diseases depends on what type of disease you are suffering from. For chronic kidney disease, the doctor will emphasize on checking the underlying causes of the disorder like blood pressure, level of sugar in the blood, and cholesterol levels.

As a part of the treatment, drugs and medications are also prescribed by doctors. He/she may also advise for lifestyle changes and dietary plans to improve the functioning of kidneys.

For people in the late stage of the disease, dialysis or kidney transplant may be the only option.

Dialysis is the process of filtering blood artificially when kidneys fail to function on its own. However, it will not help in curing the diseased kidneys.

The last and only option recommended by most doctors for complete kidney failure, other than dialysis would be to find a kidney donor for a permanent transplant. Otherwise, he/she should continue with the method of dialysis, either hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis.

What are the Symptoms of Kidney Diseases?

Symptoms of kidney diseases are hardly noticeable in the early phase. Here are some of the possible symptoms you may face with kidney diseases:

• Sleep deprivation
• Fatigue
• Muscle cramps
• Low appetite
• Swelling in feet and ankles
• Dry and itchy skin
• Frequent urine pass
• Trouble concentration

When condition gets worse and chances of kidney failure increases, you may face the following symptoms along with the ones stated above:

• Vomiting
• Changes in the number of urine pass
• Anemia
• Low appetite
• Pericardium inflammation
• Poor sexual health
• Retention of fluid
• Hyperkalemia

What is the Best Way to Prevent Kidney Disease?

If once diagnosed with kidney disease, it won’t recover naturally. However, adopting a healthy lifestyle and medication under a doctor’s guidance can maintain kidneys’ health.

Though kidney diseases due to genetic factors, age, and race-related causes are impossible to prevent, following the tips given below can offer one a rewarding improvement:

• Drink plenty of water regularly
• Reduce and check blood sugar level
• Maintain normal blood pressure by avoiding potentially unhealthy foods
• Decrease the level of salt in diet
• Quit smoking
• Avoid foods containing an excess amount of sodium
• Reduce the level of animal protein in diet
• Restrict the consumption of fruits having high amount of citric acids like lemon, orange, and grapes, etc.

The Gist of It

Even when you are not diagnosed with kidney disease or disorder, it is always advisable to take precautions with your diet and lifestyle. If you have the symptoms of kidney diseases as stated above, consult a doctor and get tested at the earliest.