Renal Failure – Things that you should know
Acute Kidney failure occurs when the kidneys are unable to filter the waste products from the blood. Here the kidneys lose their filtering ability which can result in the accumulation of dangerous levels of wastes. Kidney failure is also known as acute renal failure or injury. Kidney failure requires intensive treatment and those are irreversible.
What can cause acute kidney failure?
Acute kidney failure can occur due to various reasons. One of the first reasons is low blood flow to the kidney. The second reason by which one can experience acute kidney failure is due to direct damage. The third reason by which your kidney can experience failure is due to blockage of urine drainage tubes. Other silent causes for kidney damage are diabetes and hypertension.
What are the symptoms of kidney failure?
Here are the symptoms of acute kidney failure:
- Fatigue
- Decreased urine output
- Confusion
- Chest Pain
- Seizures
- Weakness
- Shortness of breath
- Fluid retention
What are the complications of acute kidney failure?
Some of the major complications of kidney failure are:
Chest Pain
One can experience chest pain if the lining that covers the heart gets inflamed.
Fluid Build-Up
Acute kidney failure can cause fluid build-up in the lungs. It can also result in shortness of breath.
Permanent Kidney damage
Acute kidney failure or renal failure can also lead to permanent kidney damage. Here patients are advised permanent dialysis. It is a mechanical filtration process that helps to remove toxins from the body. The next step here is a kidney transplant which is recommended only if both the kidneys are 80%+ damaged.
Muscle weakness
Renal failure can also cause muscle weakness as your body fluids to get out of balance. The body fluids like blood and electrolyte tend to get imbalanced.
Death
Acute renal failure can result in death due to loss of kidney functions.
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How to prevent acute kidney disease?
It is difficult to prevent acute kidney disease. But one can certainly reduce the risk by taking care of kidneys.
Get a healthy lifestyle and join a like-minded chronic kidney patient support group to get expert advice and connect with other patients to motivate yourself.
It is important to live a healthy lifestyle and eat a well-balanced diet. It is also important to control alcohol intake.
Check over the counter medicines
Nowadays, most people take over the counter medicines for pain relief such as aspirin, ibuprofen, etc. Consuming excessive doses of these medicines can increase the risk of kidney injury. It can get worse if the patient has diabetes or blood pressure related disease.
Consult with your doctor
It is important to track your health with a doctor to prevent various chronic conditions. Having kidney disease or any other condition can increase your risk of experiencing acute kidney failure. Make sure to follow the doctor’s recommendation to manage such conditions.
A healthy lifestyle and regular consultation with a medical expert can certainly help a patient to recover from acute renal failure.
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