CKD or Chronic Kidney Disease is a condition of loss of kidney function. If kidney dysfunction, for any reason, gets worse, it can cause toxins in the bloodstream to build up and interfere with normal functions of the body.
CKD can cause other complications and chronic diseases to worsen as well, including cardiovascular dysfunction, anemia, and nerve damage. But what exactly causes kidney disease, and how to diagnose it? Read on to find out:
Who is at risk of CKD?
Just about anyone can get CKD, however, there are certain illnesses that put you at increased risk of CKD. These include: diabetes, renal artery stenosis, polycystic kidney disease, lupus, IgA vasculitis, heart disease and hypertension, and family history of kidney disease. If you have any of the aforementioned illnesses, then be sure to seek the help of top internal medicine specialist in islamabad to prevent CKD.
How is CKD diagnosed?
If your healthcare provider suspects CKD, they would start off by investigating your history of illness. Along with the presenting complaint, your internal medicine specialist would also recommend some investigations and procedures to make a definitive diagnosis. These can include: serum creatinine, urea and complete blood count. A complete urine exam to investigate the presence of any casts or cells is also necessary, as are the imaging tests like the ultrasound scans to assess any structural abnormalities. Another investigation that helps to narrow down the etiology of disease is the kidney biopsy that’s done under local anesthesia.
How to manage CKD?
For treatment, your doctor would address the underlying cause of disease and keep in mind the stage of CKD. In most cases, the disease is only managed, and not cured. In most severe cases the best internal medicine specialist in Lahore would recommend kidney transplant.
The treatment options include:
Lifestyle changes: to make you stay as healthy as possible. For instance, smoking makes CKD progress faster, therefore, its important to work on smoking cessation. Moreover, having a healthy diet, restricting salt intake and limiting the intake of alcohol all are necessary for a healthy lifestyle change. Additionally, exercise is important, as is losing excess weight.
Managing blood pressure: for the protection of kidneys, it’s important to manage the blood pressure. Your healthcare provider may prescribe medicines known as Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors that help to lower blood pressure and also have a protective effect on the kidneys especially for diabetics. Apart from medications, exercise also helps to control blood pressure, as does losing weight.
Managing cholesterol: along with managing blood pressure, medication may also be prescribed to manage and lower blood cholesterol. This is because CKD can increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases and with high cholesterol that risk increases many folds. Medication for managing cholesterol include statins that are often accompanied by side effects of muscle and joint pain. Modifying the diet is also helpful in managing the cholesterol.
Dialysis: when disease progression is fast and cannot be managed with medication alone, then dialysis may be needed to remove the waste products from the body. There are two types of dialysis techniques, and one that works best for you would be prescribed by your physician, so be sure to ask the top internal medicine specialist in Lahore about the best therapeutic option.
