Your physician can assess kidney function with blood and urine tests, checking for waste products such as creatinine and urea nitrogen that accumulate in your system.
Imaging tests such as ultrasound or CT scans can give your provider a complete picture of your kidney size, shape and any abnormalities, while genetic tests can identify changes to genes, chromosomes or proteins which could contribute to kidney disease.
Diabetic Kidney Disease
Kidneys play an essential role in maintaining blood pressure, managing electrolyte balance and producing hormones. If kidneys begin to fail, this can result in numerous symptoms including ankles and feet swelling up (edema), changes in urine color and higher blood pressure.
Regular testing can detect changes to kidney function early enough to enable early intervention, potentially preventing further damage and decreasing the risk of end-stage renal disease (ESRD).
Conditions such as diabetes and hypertension can have devastating effects on kidney health, but regular checks for both can detect issues early. Medication that increases your blood sugar may further deteriorate kidney health; taking medications like bexagliflozin (Brenzavvy), dapagliflozin (Farxiga), or empagliflozin (Jardiance) could help slow its progress further.
High Blood Pressure
Diabetes, high blood pressure and autoimmune diseases can have a dramatic impact on kidney health, which requires regular screenings to detect these issues and ensure your doctor knows if your kidneys are in optimal health.
Urine tests can help identify one of the earliest indicators of chronic kidney disease (CKD): when protein leaks into your urine (proteinuria). Your physician may also conduct blood tests to assess how well your kidneys are working.
Preventive measures and regular checkups will significantly lower your risk of kidney-related issues, such as high blood sugar, weight and blood pressure levels. Proper management of your glucose, weight and blood pressure levels will reduce symptoms, prevent progression to chronic kidney disease (CKD) as well as decrease invasive treatments required.
Hypertension
Kidney disease is one of the most prevalent and potentially lethal medical conditions, yet treatable conditions. By early recognition of chronic kidney disease (CKD) through screenings, doctors can halt further progression to more advanced stages and save lives as well as lower costs related to dialysis or transplants.
The kidneys serve many important functions, from filtering waste out of your blood to regulating blood pressure and controlling electrolyte balance, producing hormones and supporting red blood cell production. Conducting routine urine and blood tests are an excellent way to detect kidney problems; one early indicator may be protein leakage into urine samples.
Kidney Infections
Your kidneys produce urine to flush away waste from your body and keep you healthy. Urine passes from tubes (ureters) through your bladder into your urethra before exiting through tubes (ureters). Germs in urine can grow and lead to infections; so make sure it passes properly!
Treating kidney and bloodstream infections promptly with antibiotics can help stop further damage from happening, and may require hospital admission for administration via an IV drip.
When treating a kidney infection, taking all prescribed antibiotics – even if you feel better – is crucial. Skipping doses or stopping early could result in antibiotic resistance leading to more serious consequences and further problems.
Kidney Stones
Kidney stones are composed of salts and minerals present in urine that combine into pebble-sized masses that may or may not cause discomfort while inside your kidneys, but once they travel down your ureters (tubes that drain urine from each kidney to your bladder), they can cause severe abdominal and back discomfort.
Family history of kidney stones, diet high in sodium and sugar, as well as certain medications like NSAIDs can all increase your risk. Your doctor will conduct a 24 hour urine test to detect stone-forming substances; additionally they will conduct either a CT scan or abdominal X-ray to locate and measure any stones present.
Kidney Failure
Preventing kidney failure involves regular screening and treating of conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure and autoimmune diseases as well as staying hydrated while following a healthy diet and lifestyle.
Symptoms of kidney failure include not passing any urine (anuria) or only passing small quantities of watery urine (oliguria), as well as swelling in feet, ankles and hands (edema), itchy skin, poor appetite and feeling fatigued.
To keep kidney issues from worsening, make sure to attend all regular healthcare provider and nephrologist (kidney specialist) visits. At these visits, urine and blood tests may be administered regularly in order to monitor kidney health.