Your Kidneys Aren’t Working Properly.
What does this mean? How can you stay healthy?
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“Well, here it is three years later, and I’m healthy.
I have a happy, full life and I feel great. I have
kidney disease and I’m on dialysis. But it’s a
minor thing in my life. I hardly think about it in
the course of the day.”
The Kidneys: Your
Body’s Filtering System
The kidneys play an important
role in your health.
Human beings are born with 2 kidneys —
one on each side of the backbone just below
the rib cage. Shaped like kidney beans, each
kidney is about the size of a small fist and
weighs about 1/4 pound or 114 grams.
Normal healthy kidneys…
• Clean your blood and remove extra
fluid to form urine
• Keep minerals (sodium, calcium,
potassium, and phosphorous) in balance
• Help to control blood pressure
• Help to make red blood cells
• Produce Vitamin D to keep bones healthy
All you need to stay healthy is one kidney
that works at least 20%.
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What Happens When
Your Kidneys Slow Down
or Stop Working?
When your kidneys aren’t working properly, you
may be developing kidney failure. When this
happens, harmful wastes and fluids can build
up in your body, your blood pressure may rise,
and your body may not be able to make enough
red blood cells. Most kidney diseases affect
the nephrons. These are tiny filters inside the
kidneys that clean the blood.
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Types of kidney disease:
• Chronic kidney failure
— a gradual loss of kidney function that
results from a long-term disease. This is
the more common type of kidney failure
and, although it can not be reversed, it can
be treated.
•A
cute kidney failure
— a sudden loss of kidney function
resulting from an injury or poison. Acute
kidney failure can usually be reversed
within a few weeks if treated quickly.
•E
nd-stage renal disease (ESRD)
— a condition where the kidneys do not
work or only very little kidney function
is left.
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Taken from www.healthhype.com
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Notes
What Causes the Kidneys
to Stop Working?
Kidney failure can be caused by a
number of diseases or conditions:
• Diabetes is the most common cause of
kidney failure. High levels of blood sugar
(glucose) in people with diabetes can
damage the small blood vessels in the
nephrons and cause the kidneys to fail.
Review your blood sugar levels each
time you visit your nurse or doctor.
Know your numbers. Strive for “normal”
blood sugar numbers.
•H
igh blood pressure, or hypertension
can also damage the small blood vessels
in the filters of your kidneys, causing them
to fail. Uncontrolled high blood pressure can
make kidney disease progress even faster.
Medication, healthy diet, and exercise are
ways to keep your blood pressure in a healthy
range to protect your kidneys. Write down
your blood pressure each time you visit
your nurse or doctor.
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•L
upus (a disease of the immune system),
polycystic kidney disease (multiple cysts
in the kidneys), and glomerulonephritis
(an inflammation of the kidney’s filtering
mechanism) are just some of the other
diseases than can lead to kidney failure.
• Injury or trauma from an accident,
and poisons, such as street drugs
or large quantities of certain over-thecounter medicines can result in acute,
or sudden kidney failure.
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Notes
Symptoms You Can
Feel When Your
Kidneys Aren’t
Working Properly
Symptoms of kidney failure can vary from
person to person. Some people with kidney
disease may not even feel sick, or they may
not notice their symptoms. Often, some
people do not feel sick until their kidneys
are no longer removing waste. This is why
kidney disease is sometimes called a
“silent” disease.
As the disease gets worse and kidney
function slows down, most people
experience symptoms of uremia. Uremia
means urea or waste in the blood.
Staying Healthy With
Your Kidney Function
To remain healthy, it is very important to
monitor how slowly or quickly your kidney
disease is developing. Kidney function is what
percentage of your kidneys is still working. You
and your doctor will be able to tell by keeping
a close watch on your serum creatinine,
a waste product found in your blood that
can be checked with a simple blood test.
People with kidney failure can develop
complications such as anemia and bone
disease. To stay healthy, it is important to
regularly follow up with your healthcare
team and have tests that will help find
these problems early so the best therapy
can be started.
Symptoms include:
• feeling tired and/or weak,
• swelling of the hands and feet,
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• shortness of breath,
• appetite loss, a bad taste in the mouth, vomiting, nausea, weight loss,
• difficulty sleeping, itching, muscle
cramps, and darkening of the skin.
Be sure to tell your doctor or nurse
if you feel any of these symptoms.
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Kidney Failure Can Be
Managed To Keep
You Healthy
Today, there are a number of treatments for
kidney disease, and even kidney failure, that can
help you live a healthy, active life. These include
medications and treatment procedures designed
to slow down your kidney disease, as well as
those procedures that can remove waste similar
to a normal functioning kidney.
If your kidneys are slowing down, your
physician may recommend a treatment
that does some of the work of the kidneys
called dialysis or, eventually,
kidney transplantation.
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Dialysis is a procedure that temporarily
removes waste and extra fluid from your body.
One type of dialysis procedure uses the natural
membrane of the body (called the peritoneum)
as the filter to remove waste and fluid, and is
called Peritoneal Dialysis.
The second type of dialysis uses a machine
and an external man-made blood filter
to remove waste from the body, and is
called Hemodialysis.
Kidney transplantation is a surgical procedure
that places a new kidney from a donor into
your body.
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Questio
Remember You Are a
Part of a Healthcare
Team: You Are Not Alone!
Managing your kidney disease in order to stay
healthy is a team effort. Often, you may need
to take the lead by asking questions, reporting
symptoms, reading on your own, or just
reaching out to another team member. Your
healthcare team includes doctors, nurses,
dieticians, pharmacists, social workers,
and psychologists — each with individual
responsibilities, but all working together to make
sure you get the very best care. Your
family and friends also play an important
role in helping you and your kidneys stay
as healthy as possible.
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Stay in Touch with
Your Feelings
When learning about a new health problem from
your doctor, it is common to experience many
feelings, especially if you generally feel well and
the news comes as a surprise.
These feelings can range from shock, that
perhaps you have been given incorrect facts, to
sadness, depression, and anger. Remember, it
is very common to feel this way, and you should
speak with your nurse and doctor. They can connect you with other members of the healthcare
team who can help you to work through these
feelings. Also, your healthcare team can connect
you with other resources so that you can make
decisions that are best for you.
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Your Healthcare Team
Nephrologist — a doctor who specializes in
kidney diseases. Your nephrologist oversees
all the medical care related to your kidneys,
including prescribing medications, ordering
and evaluating tests, and designing your
treatment plan.
Nurse — a registered nurse who specializes
in kidney care. He or she works with the
nephrologist and healthcare team to coordinate
your care, perform tests, and provide education
to support you in making informed decisions
regarding a treatment plan that is best for you
and your family.
Dietician — a renal dietician is a nutritional
expert who can provide diet and nutritional
advice in order to help you live well with
kidney disease. Your dietician may create
a meal plan or special diet that will keep
your kidneys healthy longer.
Social Worker — this person is a trained
counsellor who can provide support and
practical advice on living with a chronic
illness and adjusting to life with dialysis
or transplantation. They can be a resource
for information on issues such as finances
or transportation.
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Pharmacist — a pharmacist works with you
and the healthcare team of nurses and doctors
to provide education about your medications.
They can answer questions about other types
of herbal therapies that could be harmful to
your kidneys, monitor medication prescriptions
for possible drug interactions, and provide
suggestions to the team about the best types
of medications based on your kidney health
at a given time.
Notes
Kidney Resources
There are many resources available to help you learn
about your kidney disease and how to best live with it.
Here are just a few:
Kidney Foundation of Canada www.kidney.ca
Canadian Diabetes Association www.diabetes.ca
Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada www.heartandstroke.ca
AGIR (French kidney patient connection – Québec) www.agir.qc.ca
Kristin’s Story
I learned that my kidneys had failed around my 48th birthday,
after becoming so sick that I was rushed to the hospital. I had
trouble accepting the news. I felt it was much too early for my
active life to end.
Three years later
Now, I’m more active than I was before I got sick, and I can honestly say I’m healthier. Kidney disease and
dialysis are minor parts of my life. Nobody I meet would ever guess that my kidneys don’t work. I exercise every
day. I work full-time as a journalist. My husband and I still travel — we’ve even flown to Europe.
My husband, our cat, Leo, and I have a lovely old home, and I enjoy puttering around the house and gardening.
On weekends, we like to try out new recipes. I enjoy good food as much as ever —I’m just a little more careful
about what I eat.
I used to push myself too hard. I never felt entitled to relax. Now I think about life differently. I’m easier on myself
and I’m more productive. I’ve even taken up quilting.
If I had known then what I know now
After a few weeks of treatment, I was feeling so much better that I was sure my doctor was going to tell me that
my kidneys were working again. When I accepted that they were never going to, I was really scared.
Looking back, I realize it would have been so much easier for me if I had known about kidney disease. My
kidneys were damaged because of severe high blood pressure that went undetected for many years. I could
have protected my kidneys if I had known the signs of high blood pressure, or that it could be controlled with
medication. If I had taken better care of myself, I might have even prevented kidney failure.
Never stop learning
Today, we know so much more about taking care of ourselves and living well. In the last twenty years, there have
been many medical advances, and doctors now think more about treating the whole person, not just the disease.
And we, the kidney patients, are taking more responsibility for our own healthcare. My advice to you is to learn all
you can. Learn how to eat right and what medications you need to be healthy. Learn about treatment options and
support. Ask your doctor questions. Search the Internet. Do whatever you have to take control. It’s natural to feel
afraid and sad. I certainly did. But keeping a positive attitude and learning can help you. Remember, you can still
live the life you want.
Sources
Stein, Andy, and Janet Wild. Kidney Failure Explained: Everything you always wanted to know about
dialysis and kidney transplants but were afraid to ask. London, England: Class Publishing, 1999.
Thank you to those centres who helped put this material together.
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