Kidney disease
Role of the kidney
The human kidney has the following tasks:
- Excretion of waste products such as urea, creatinine, uric acid
- Excretion of excess salts such as sodium, potassium, phosphate or hydrogen ion
- Control of electrolyte excretion that is, when excess water from food and / or concentration of the
Urine in the absence of fluid intake.
- Blood pressure regulation through the formation of renin, a protein body
- Degradation of toxins and drugs
- Hormone formation
eg knochenmarkstimulierendes and thus stimulating the formation of blood erythropoietin - Formation of active vitamin D hormone
important for bone metabolism and calcium absorption in the intestine
Symptoms associated with chronic renal insufficiency
As a rule, renal disorders are chronic pain and are usually
basis because of other symptoms such as high blood pressure or "accidentally" carried out
Studies discovered.
In advanced renal failure occur in the following symptoms:
The destruction of the functional units of the kidney (nephrons) have the remaining work a "major afford" to. This leads to the loss of flexibility, which in turn change in the rate of urine output has resulted. ie kidney patients must often-even at night, leave the water.
Notes further from the ability with which dietary substances and / or the metabolic waste products caused by the urine excrete.
Only 2 - 2.5% of the intact nephron, the patient falls into a state of uremia, which accumulation of urine in the blood and says the state is tantamount to poisoning.
The uremia can be recognized in altered laboratory values. Also increase the concentrations of urinary substances in the blood (eg, urea, uric acid, creatinine at). Phosphate and potassium, the healthy kidney are excreted by one, accumulate in the blood.
The diseased kidney loses the ability of the hormone erythropoietin to form, which for the formation of red blood cells (erythrocytesis responsible). As a consequence, decreases the number of red blood cells from the one it comes to anemia (anemia). The resulting reduction of oxygen transport in the body of the patient to face the symptoms fatigue, reduced performance and a pale skin color.
Metabolites and dyes that are normally excreted in the urine are stored with, the skin is in, give her a parchment look and causing unhealthy-looking coloring.
Anorexia is adjusted.
Disorders of the gastrointestinal tract
High blood pressure
Hypertension
Untreated high blood pressure almost invariably attracts an injury to the kidneys (and other organs) after himself. The progression of renal disease is accelerated by hypertension. Second, a kidney disease caused an increase in blood pressure. It is located almost in a vicious circle.
It is therefore important, or rather necessarily need to make immediately to treat a high blood pressure, kidney damage, at least to delay the progression, or an organ damage not only to be created.
The first steps to lower blood pressure include the adjustment of lifestyle to the conditions:
- Low salt food
- less alcohol
- Weight control and possibly reduce
- Stop smoking
- more exercise
- more relaxing times
- Blood fat levels blood sugar control, and possibly reduce
The second step to lower blood pressure, by administration of drugs is due to the many different drugs is extremely complex and needs a doctor evaluated and implemented by.
It should be noted that a high blood pressure can be normalized by tomorrow to today. This will take weeks or even months.
Diabetes
Causes of renal insufficiency, the diabetes mellitus (diabetes) be, and rising.
Diabetes, the existence of an increased blood glucose levels due to insufficient insulin action. This may be due to inadequate production and release of this hormone or limited efficacy of the produced insulin.
As a consequence of this there will be changes in blood vessels throughout the body, including the renal vessels, resulting in deposits in the glomeruli and thereby form kidney tissue dies. These vascular changes in the kidney during diabetes are referred to as diabetic nephropathy.
The progression of diabetes and other heavily depends on the behavior of the patient, from his discipline under the appropriate diet and taking medication, from. kidney damage in consequence of diabetes to suffer The risk increases with the duration of the disease.
At a very advanced diabetic nephropathy Dialysis is usually the only life-sustaining treatment.
Glomerulnephritis
In glomerulonephritis is an inflammation of the renal cortex located in the renal corpuscles (glomeruli).
Ca. third of all Dialyspatienten suffer from chronic glomerulonephritis.
The disease can be connected to an infection in the mouth and throat or the flu occur in, but often the cause is unknown.
Renal failure due to drugs
Many renal failure due to a long intake of analgesics or better tablets abuse.
Polycystic kidney
Under a cyst is defined as a capsule closed by Gewebshohlraum.
In so-called polycystic kidney disease is a bilateral dilatation of tubules and collecting ducts with a lifetime of progressive cyst formation. This is connected with the sinking normal kidney tissue. A single cyst may be a few millimeters and reach between 15 cm size.
The cysts are filled with clear yellow fluid, bleeding into the cysts, and infections are also possible.
50% of the children of patients with polycystic kidney disease suffer the same suffering.
There are different forms of the occurrence of cystic kidney diseases.
Pyelonephritis
Pyelonephritis is an inflammation of the kidneys, usually caused by the bacteria. The pathogens reach the kidney in different ways - from the Hanrblase, via the circulation, the lymphatic system or the colon.
The first signs are occurring fevers, chills, anorexia and severe flank pain.
When acute illness not really be cured, there is a chronic disease which the loss of good working kidney tissue has the effect of and thus it comes to kidney failure.
Contracted kidney
The shrinkage of the kidney may be inherited or have arisen in the course of life, mostly as result of a restricted blood supply, this leads to the death of kidney tissue and thus to the shrinkage of the kidney.