Abstract
This paper further explains kidney disease. It will discuss the signs, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatments. The kidneys are a main component in the urinary system. They function as the body’s filter for blood and remove the waste to later produce urine. The kidneys are small organs situated in the middle of your back right beneath the rib cage. They are a main component of the body and can greatly impact the body if they are affected. The kidneys can face many difficulties and diseases but there are treatments for many of the challenges they may face. When experiencing symptoms of kidney disease make sure to see the doctor immediately for treatment. Sometimes when there is too much damage there aren’t treatments for the disease. There are many in the United States who face kidney disease, so a cure or treatment is being researched and discovered.
Introduction and Pertinent Anatomy and Physiology
The kidneys are an important part of your urinary system. In the human body you have two kidneys, which are both about the size of your fist. They are located just below the rib cage and near the middle of your back. The kidneys main function is to filter your blood and remove wastes and extra water that later becomes urine. As mentioned in the article from WebMD, “All the blood in our bodies passes through the kidneys several times a day. The kidneys remove wastes, control the body’s fluid balance, and regulate the balance of electrolytes”.1 These are all functions of a healthy kidney as well as make renin, erythropoietin and vitamin D. As mentioned in another article from WebMD, renin is an enzyme that helps regulate blood pressure, erythropoietin stimulates red blood cell production and the active form of vitamin D is needed for bone health.3 The kidneys have millions of units called nephrons and these are the microscopic filters for blood. When the kidneys are filtering blood they are creating urine with will be collected in the kidneys’ pelvis. When a kidney is infected, the nephrons are usually what are destroyed.
Explanation, Epidemiology, and Etiology
In 1950, Ada DeBold and her husband Harry, we one of the first to experience kidney disease when their child was suffering. They made many efforts to try to save him, but were unable to because there was no treatment.5 Their son had nephrosis. With Ada’s efforts to find a cure/treatment, the National Kidney Foundation was formed in 1964.5 Ever since the foundation started their goal was to raise awareness of kidney disease and make all efforts to finding a cure. The foundation found a cure for nephrosis that has saved many lives since the first incident. Ever since Ada and Harry DeBold’s son the foundation has grown discovering new ways to cure kidney disease such as dialysis and transplants.
Infections and diseases to the kidney can be very serious. When a kidney is damaged, waste products and fluids build up in the body. Kidney damage causes swelling in your ankles, vomiting, weakness, poor sleep and shortness of breath.3 The kidneys should be treated as soon as symptoms occur. If the kidneys are left untreated your kidneys may stop functioning. If the kidneys completely stop functioning it is potentially fatal. There are many different diseases that can affect the kidney. A few diseases include acute kidney disease, chronic kidney disease and renal cell carcinoma.
Acute kidney disease is caused by lack of blood flow to the kidneys, direct damage to the kidneys themselves, or urine backed up in the kidneys.4 Acute kidney disease is when your kidneys suddenly stop functioning. If you have experienced a traumatic injury with blood loss, are dehydrated, go into shock during a severe infection, have blocked urine flow, take specific drugs or are around certain toxins you can have an increased risk of acute kidney infection.4 Long distance endurance runners also have a higher risk of this disease because they typically don’t drink enough fluids while competing. They are likely to get this disease because of the breakdown of muscle tissue.4 With the breakdown of muscle tissue, a large amount of myoglobin is released in the blood stream and can damage the kidneys.
When kidneys don’t function properly for longer than 3 months it is called chronic kidney disease. This is very dangerous because you may not experience symptoms until there is a lot of damage done to the kidney. From the WebMD article, “It’s possible to lose as much as 90% of kidney function without experiencing any symptoms or problems”.4 This damage is often not repairable. The main causes of chronic kidney disease are diabetes and high blood pressure. Another kidney disease is kidney cancer. The most common form of kidney cancer is renal cell carcinoma. Kidney cancer is a severe infection/disease and is typically caused by smoking but could have other causes, such as health, genetics and your diet.
Symptoms
The list below is multiple symptoms that one may experience if they have chronic kidney disease. The symptoms below are most but are not limited to the list below. These symptoms were found from the WebMD article titled “Kidney Disease Causes and Basic Information”.3
• Nausea and vomiting
• Passing only small amounts of urine
• Swelling of the ankles
• Puffiness around the eyes
• Unpleasant taste in the mouth
• Urine-like odor to the breath
• Persistent fatigue or shortness of breath
• Loss of appetite
• Increasingly higher blood pressure
• Muscle cramps in legs
• Pale skin
• Excessively dry, itchy skin
For children, they may experience increased fatigue and sleepiness, decrease in appetite, and poor growth.3
Diagnosis
As soon as symptoms are experienced a doctor should be contacted immediately. The doctor will advise you to have blood and urine tests, which will monitor early kidney disease. When diagnosing chronic kidney disease, some tests include urinalysis, ultrasound, CT scan, MRI scan, Urine and Blood cultures, ureteroscopy or kidney biopsy. A urinalysis is a routine urine test using a machine and a person looking through a microscope. This test can help detect infections, inflammation, microscopic bleeding and kidney damage.4 An ultrasound is a probe placed on the skin that reflects sound waves off of the kidneys and creates images on a screen.4 A kidney ultrasound can reveal if there are blockages in urine flow, stones, cysts or suspicious masses in the kidneys. A computed tomography scan also known as a CT scan, “takes a series of X-rays and a computer creates detailed images of the kidneys”.4 This test shows detailed images and provides more information about injuries and/or diseases of the kidneys. The images are more detailed than a normal x-ray. Another kidney test that can be performed for diagnosis is a magnetic resonance imaging scan. This is also known as an MRI scan. The scanner uses radio waves in a magnetic field, making a high-resolution image of the kidneys. This test is also used to determine infection, disease and damage of the kidneys.4 Urine and blood cultures are common when infection is suspected. These tests will identify the bacteria responsible and can help target antibiotic therapy. One other test is an uteroscopy. This is when “An endoscope (flexible tube with a camera on its end) is passed through the urethra into the bladder and ureters”.4 The last possible test is a kidney biopsy. The doctors use a needle inserted in the back to obtain a small piece of kidney tissue. The tissue is examined under a microscope and can help determine a kidney problem.4 All of these tests are used to determine the infection, disease or damage to the kidney. These tests can help doctors differentiate between different infections and diseases or illnesses.
Prevention, Treatment
Treatment is very important for kidney disease. You want to make sure to get to the doctor as soon as any symptoms are experienced. The sooner you get to the doctor and have tests completed the less damage the kidneys will have. If you wait too long the kidneys may be completely damaged and not functioning and will not be able to be repaired. There are quite a few treatments for kidney disease. The treatment also depends on the severity of the disease/illness that the patient is experiencing. Antibiotics are used to treat infections caused by bacteria. The type of antibiotic can be determined by prior blood/urine tests. Nephrostomy is another treatment. This is when a tube/catheter is placed through the skin into the kidney.4 It helps drain urine directly from the kidney, bypassing blockages in urine flow. A third treatment could be a lithotripsy. This treatment is for kidney stones. The kidney stone may be shattered into smaller pieces to pass through the urine but lithotripsy is when ultrasound shock waves project through the body shattering the kidney stone.4 If the kidney disease/illness is very sever, removal of the kidney may be the best option. When the kidney is removed it is called nephrectomy, and this only occurs when there is severe kidney damage or kidney cancer. One main treatment is dialysis. This is when there is artificial filtering of the blood replacing the lost function of the damaged kidneys. Specifically with the kidney, hemodialysis is the most common method of dialysis.4 When a person has complete kidney failure hemodialysis may be the best option. They are connected to a dialysis machine that helps filter the blood and return it to the body.4 There are other types of dialysis such as peritoneal dialysis. This is when a large amount of special fluid is placed in the abdomen through a catheter.4 The body is able to filter the blood with the use of the natural membrane lining of the abdomen. Later the fluid and waste is drained. Both dialysis treatments have risks and complications such as infection. Also, these procedures can place a toll on your emotional health. If the kidney is severely damaged, another treatment may be to have a kidney transplant.4 This is common in patients with kidney cancer, end stage renal disease, or anyone with complete loss of function in the kidney. Patients lean toward this form of treatment to avoid lifetime dialysis treatments and overall improve their quality of life. When transplanting a kidney, patients need a perfect match. The most common “matching” kidney may be from a family member. It may also be donated from an unrelated person or a family of a recently deceased person. Not everyone with kidney disease qualifies for a transplant. “However, not everyone with kidney disease is a candidate for a transplant; previous medical conditions or age may prevent someone from getting a transplant”.3 Treatments for kidney disease are necessary because the kidney has a major function in the body. Depending on the case and how severe the infection/illness is, the treatment for the kidney will be different.
There are also ways to prevent kidney disease and infections. It is known that “diabetes and high blood pressure account for two thirds of all cases of chronic kidney disease”.3 With this being said we need to manage a healthy diet, exercise and medications to help the kidney function properly and prevent failure. Those with high blood pressure or diabetes should regularly have tests with their doctor to be aware of their risk for kidney diseases.3 They also need to be more cautious about diet, exercise and medications. Overall everyone should be cautious and make sure to stay hydrated to prevent kidney infections and diseases.
Future
After reading the article by Critsy Lytal, “one in 10 adults in the U.S. — more than 20 million people — are suffering from some degree of chronic kidney disease”.2 This is a large number of the population, which means research and a cure needs to be found. Stem cell research is currently being conducted at the University of Southern California. Yasir Qazi, a member of UKRO’s Medical Scientific Advisory Board and medical director of USC’s Kidney-Pancreas Transplant Program, can envision how stem-cell therapies could help treat patients.2 They are working on a cure but because the cause of kidney diseases is unknown it makes it a little difficult. USC is working on discovering the cause of kidney diseases so that they can find a way to treat those causes. Once the cause of kidney disease is discovered the research will be a little easier to cure kidney disease. As of now the research is being done but no new discoveries have been made.
Conclusion
The kidney is a major organ in the digestive tract. It can face many illnesses, infections and diseases. One must keep their body hydrated and healthy to prevent any infections. If a person is experiencing any symptoms they should immediately contact their doctor to start tests for kidney disease. If treatment isn’t started promptly the kidney can worsen and you may lose all function in the kidney. Dialysis and transplant are two main treatments when the kidney loses function. Kidney disease affects many in the United States therefore should be a concern for many and a permanent treatment should be found to cure the causes of this disease.
I feel this is a very important topic and more people should be aware of the risk of kidney disease. My father has experienced kidney cancer so I am aware of the risks. After he had his kidney removed he had to change his entire diet, and make sure to avoid certain things. He had to change his lifestyle and make sure to stay healthy because the other kidney would be working a lot more than normal. This is a very scary disease because it could have spread. Luckily only one of his kidneys was infected but if both were affected than he would have needed a kidney transplant. This topic hits very close to home especially because I have had a family member experience problems with their kidney. I feel that there needs to be research done to find what causes certain kidney diseases so that others don’t have to experience kidney diseases or cancers.
Works Cited/References
1. Brenner, B. Brenner & Rector’s The Kidney, 8th Edition, Saunders Elsevier, 2007.
2. Lytal C. Stem cell research may unlock cures for kidney disease and more. Stem cell research may unlock cures for kidney disease and more. https://news.usc.edu/64927/stem-cell-research-may-unlock-cures-for-kidney- disease-and-more/. Published July 7, 2014. Accessed December 8, 2016.
3. Kidney Disease Causes and Basic Information. Retrieved December 8, 2016, from http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/understanding-kidney-disease-basic- information
4. The Kidneys (Human Anatomy): Picture, Function, Definition, and Conditions. Retrieved December 8, 2016, from http://www.webmd.com/urinary- incontinence-oab/picture-of-the-kidneys
5. History. The National Kidney Foundation. https://www.kidney.org/about/history. Published 2015. Accessed December 8, 2016.