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WHAT DO THE KIDNEYS DO?
Kidneys help keep us alive and healthy.
Normally, people are born with two kidneys. Each kidney is about 5 inches long and about 3 inches wide. They each weigh about a quarter of a pound. They are located in the back of the body, next to the lower part of the ribs, on either side of the spine.
Kidneys are very important in keeping you alive and healthy. They act like a filtering system to get rid of water and wastes in the blood. Kidneys filter about 400 gallons of recycled blood every day. If these waste products and toxins are not removed from the blood, you will become very sick and could possibly die. This waste product fluid is called UREA (yoo-ree-uh) and the condition that describes the build-up of urea in the blood is called UREMIA (yoo-ree-mee-uh). Often, this condition happens slowly, over a long period of time, so you often do not realize how sick you really are until you are very, very sick. If the kidneys stop working and no other treatment is given to remove the toxins and waste products from the blood, you will go into a coma and possibly die.
Another job of the kidneys is to balance minerals and electrolytes and get rid of extra water in the body. The water that is filtered from the blood by the kidneys is mixed with the toxins and waste material and goes out of the body as urine. If your body is not able to get rid of this extra water, it can build up in places like the lungs, the heart, and your arms and legs. This extra water can make it very hard to breath, especially when you try to sleep. You may find yourself very short of breath when you try to lie down. You may notice that your clothes are getting tighter and your shoes no longer fit. It is not uncommon to gain several pounds a day from the build-up of this extra water.
Other functions of the kidney include making EPO, a hormone that helps make red blood cells to help protect us from anemia. Kidneys also play an important part in keeping our bones strong and healthy and in regulating blood pressure.
WHAT CAUSES KIDNEY DISEASE?
Kidney disease happens for many reasons. The most common causes of kidney disease are Diabetes and Hypertension (High Blood Pressure). Sometimes certain medications have a tendency to cause kidney problems that may eventually lead to kidney damage. Chronic kidney stones or enlarged prostate may cause kidney damage. Other causes include diseases that are inside the kidney or inside the body.
COMMON CAUSES OF KIDNEY DISEASE
High Blood Pressure
Diabetes
Heart Disease
High Cholesterol Levels
Inflammation or Swelling Inside the Kidney
Obesity
Blockage of Urine
Infection
Heredity
Smoking
If one kidney quits working but the other kidney is healthy and working well, the healthy kidney will take over the function of both kidneys.
One kidney is enough to keep a person alive and healthy. It is for this reason that you can donate a kidney to someone and still remain alive and healthy. However, if neither kidney is working well and both kidneys stop working, you will need to begin dialysis.
STAGES OF KIDNEY DISEASE
Chronic Kidney Disease is divided into stages based on the level of kidney function. There are five stages with Stage 1 being the highest level of kidney function and Stage 5 as the lowest level of kidney function. In an effort to help you get your kidney disease under control and to hold on to your kidney function for as long as possible, we will manage your kidney disease based on the "stage" of your kidney disease.
As blood is pumped through the kidneys, the filtering units (glomeruli) remove the toxins and waste products. The stage of your kidney disease is determined by calculating your "GFR" which stands for Glomerular Filtration Rate. The GFR is the amount of blood that is filtered through your kidneys each minute. We calculate your GFR by using your age, race, gender, and blood creatinine level. We will perform this calculation often and we will let you know the results each time.
STAGE |
DESCRIPTION |
GFR |
1 |
Kidney damage with normal or decreased GFR |
>90 |
2 |
Kidney damage with mild decrease in GFR |
60-89 |
3 |
Moderate decrease in GFR |
30-59 |
4 |
Severe decrease in GFR |
15-29 |
5 |
Kidney failure |
<15 |
The GFR for normal kidneys is 120-130 ml of blood per minute pumping through the kidney. When this number begins to fall, your physician will ask you to see a kidney specialist to find the cause and develop a plan of action to attempt to stop your kidney function from falling further.