The incidence of chronic kidney disease is rising in the country owing to late diagnosis, high volume of stones disease and rising trend of diabetes and high blood pressure in people.
According to health experts, blood pressure and diabetes must be controlled optimally to keep kidney fit and the best way to prevent kidney failure is early diagnosis of underlying disease and aggressive treatment.
They said diet, nutrition and lifestyle should be healthy throughout the life even if diabetes or blood pressure is under control. They said that toxic drugs and fake medicines have their own considerable share in kidney damage. Dr Sharif Astori from Federal Government Poly Clinic (FGPC) hospital said that kidney diseases are diagnosed through history, examinations by qualified doctors and certain tests.
He said that many people know nothing about kidney disease until it’s too late, adding, because of lack of awareness diagnosis gets delayed. He observed that unlike many diseases, kidney disease often has no symptoms until it is very advanced.
He said to keep kidneys healthier for longer time, a very important step is to learn about the disease and also get kidneys tested on periodic basis. He recommended to make sure fluid intakes are proper during kidney disorder.
He said that the clues that can make people aware of kidney problems are generalized weakness, increasing paleness, aches and pain, vomiting, falling appetite, body swelling, breathing difficulties and blood in urine. Kidney diseases also run in families, he added.
Dr Astori said that kidney disease is usually a progressive disease, which means that the damage in the kidneys tends to be permanent. He added kidney diseases also make risks for heart diseases and stroke higher.
He said if one or both kidneys fail completely then kidney no longer filters wastes properly to keep healthy. He said that the treatment of kidney failure is either hemodialysis or kidney transplant, whereas dialysis offer an excellent short time cure. He advised that once the kidney damages, patients with blood pressure and diabetes should visit their doctor regularly. The dose of antibiotics should be adjusted according to the kidney function, he added. He said many kidney diseases can be treated efficiently if diagnosed in time otherwise permanent kidney damage occurs that can prove fatal for the patient.
He said that transplant is the option which gives the best chance of a good long term quality of life. He said one year patient survival on hemodialysis is 75 percent and after transplant it is 98 percent.