Kidney disease is not uncommon in today’s world due to the inactive standard of living, unhealthy habits. Kidney disease contributes to almost 850,000 deaths per year, along with other urinary tract problems as per the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Burden of Disease Project.
Chronic renal disease also known as chronic kidney disease (CKD), is a progressive loss in kidney function over a period of months or years Chronic kidney disease occurs when the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is below 60 mL/min/1.73m2 for a period of 3 months or more.
Several lifestyle habit damage the kidneys and reduce their ability to filter wastes from the blood (glomerular filtration rate or GFR) leading to chronic kidney disease. In case the kidneys fail in their ability to filter blood efficiently; wastes start piling up in the body causing lots of complications.
Kumuda (Name Changed), a 45-year-old nurse at a private hospital, came to Columbia Asia Hospital Hebbal as a last resort when all hopes of survival was lost. Her life was normal before she met with an accident two years ago. Her left leg was injured and fractured during the accident started swelling in her right feet. The doctor mentioned that it is caused because of pressure on her right leg.
Kumuda wasn’t convinced by this answer. she decided to go for a kidney test, the reports stated that her creatinine levels were at 10, very high for normal person (0.6 to 1.2 milligrams). Both Kumuda and her husband were devastated hearing about her kidney failure. They visited a couple of hospitals and by the time they came to Columbia Asia Hospital, they had also lost faith in hospitals because of their bitter experiences and negative reply.
Dr. Ajit and team of reputed doctors treated Kumuda. she was under dialysis for 2 years, finally on 8th April 2017, she underwent a kidney transplant surgery. Her husband Malthesh was the donor as there were no medical issue between them and both had the same blood group. Mathew donated his right kidney for his beloved wife and Kumuda’ s left kidney is the one which has been transplanted.
Kumuda’ s trust in Medical world was regained thanks to doctor Ajit and team, both husband and wife have thanked Columbia Asia Hospital, Hebbal for this new lease of life.
CAUSES FOR CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE
More than 50 percent of chronic kidney disease patients in India are due to obesity as per a Pan-India report. The recent study reflects a large increase in chronic kidney disease (CKD) however, In India there is no study and minimal data on the prevalence of chronic kidney disease.
The data on abdominal obesity is even more disturbing, 48 per cent of men and 63 per cent of women unveiling waist circumference beyond the accepted cut-offs for the Asian population, the study said. Obese people are most likely to develop kidney disease than those with normal weight. Obesity increases the progression of kidney disease and complications.
Today diabetes and hypertension account for 40–60% cases of chronic kidney disease. The recent Indian Council of Medical Research data states diabetes in Indian adult population has risen to 7.1%, A study published from a rural belt of Karnataka population had a mean age of 39.88 ± 15.87 years with 3.82% prevalence of diabetes and 33.62% of hypertension. Authors found 6.3% prevalence of CKD stage 3; which is the highest reported till date by any Indian worker. It is alarming to observe the prevalence of hypertension among 75% population who had normal or low body mass index. There has been a lot of fluctuation in the movement of people perplexing the gap among urban and rural areas. There is a need for a more elaborate and precise data to validate these findings. Pesticides like arsenic, cadmium, fluoride etc. are suspected to be the threats causing renal histology and chronic tubule-interstitial nephritis.
SYMPTOMS
· CKD is very dangerous as it is asymptomatic and progresses silently in the early stages. kidney disease progresses to an advanced stage by the time the patients develop any of the following symptoms.
· Weakness and fatigue
· Pain while urinating
· Swelling
· Frequency or urination
· Lower back Pain
· Lack of appetite
· Vomiting and nausea
· Itching and Skin rashes all over the body
DIAGNOSIS
The problem occurs while delaying regular health check-ups. ‘Poor lifestyle practices increases the incidence of diabetes and high blood pressure. Altering lifestyle and dietary changes early can save kidneys from deteriorating completely.
For screening of your kidney function, the following tests have to be undertaken:
1. Blood tests: Several markers in the blood identify the kidney function. To detect kidney disease, Urea and creatinine are the gold standards.
2. Urine tests: The ratio of values urine marker and blood sets the actual rate of clearance of kidneys.
3. Estimated GFR: The filtration rate of the kidneys estimated based on a formula that include serum creatinine values along with correction factors like age, gender and race is EGFR.
4. Imaging tests: ultrasonic waves are used in renal ultrasound to analyse the shape, size and functioning of the kidneys most often to identify renal injury or changes in filtration capacity of the kidneys.
PREVENTION
Chronic kidney disease can be prevented. We cannot do much about factors like external injury to the kidneys, age but a lot of other major risk factors leading to kidney disease can be prevented. Minimizing stress on the kidneys as a regular practice can reduce your risk of developing CKD later in life.
Here are 3 expert tips to keep your kidneys healthy and prevent kidney disease:
· People with high BP should keep it in control to delay or prevent kidney failure
· Diabetics should control the sugar levels with proper diet and regular exercise
· Avoid excessive salt intake
