How Kidney Infection Affects The Weight:
Weight and kidney infection are proportional to each other. In case of a kidney infection, the person tends to lose all the strength which might cause unexplained tiredness. The fatigue will progress and no chance of retaining the strength is seen in impending days. No medicines offer relief and one faces problems in doing day to day activities.
This extreme tiredness is accompanied by loss of appetite or anorexia. There is no craving for food experienced, no willingness to eat. The body demands more water because the bacterial infections dry the body and make it crave for fluids.
What Is Peritoneal Dialysis
Peritoneal dialysis uses the lining of the abdominal cavity as the dialysis filter to rid the body of waste and to balance electrolyte levels. A catheter is placed in the abdominal cavity through the abdominal wall by a surgeon, and it is expected to remain in place for the long-term. The dialysis solution is then dripped in through the catheter and left in the abdominal cavity for a few hours after which, it is drained out. During that time, waste products leech from the blood flowing through the lining of the abdomen , and attach themselves to the fluid that has been instilled by the catheters. Often, patients instill the dialysate fluid before bedtime, and drain it in the morning.
There are benefits and complications for each type of dialysis. Not every patient can choose which type he or she would prefer. The treatment decision depends on the patientâs illness and their past medical history along with other issues. Usually, the nephrologist will have a long discussion with the patient and family to decide what will be the best option available.
Dialysis is lifesaving. Without it, patients whose kidneys no longer function would die relatively quickly due to electrolyte abnormalities and the buildup of toxins in the blood stream. Patients may live many years with dialysis but other underlying and associated illnesses often are the cause of death.
Different Types Of Pain
Kidney infections usually cause different kinds of discomfort that you should learn to recognize:
- Pain on both sides of the abdomen.
- Pain that sometimes radiates to the groin, and pressing on the region provides temporary relief.
- Severe lower back pain, usually on one side. It may feel like a hot disc in the area.
- Intermittent but intense headaches.
Recommended Reading: Is Voltaren Gel Bad For Your Kidneys
What Are The Early Signs Of Kidney Disease In Patients With Diabetes
The earliest sign of diabetic kidney disease is increased excretion of albumin in the urine. This is present long before the usual tests done in your doctor’s office show evidence of kidney disease, so it is important for you to have this test on a yearly basis. Weight gain and ankle swelling may occur. You will use the bathroom more at night. Your blood pressure may get too high. As a person with diabetes, you should have your blood, urine, and blood pressure checked at least once a year. This will lead to better control of your disease and early treatment of high blood pressure and kidney disease. Maintaining control of your diabetes can lower your risk of developing severe kidney disease.
What Is Shock Wave Lithotripsy
Shock Wave Lithotripsy is the most common treatment for kidney stones in the U.S. Shock waves from outside the body are targeted at a kidney stone causing the stone to fragment. The stones are broken into tiny pieces. lt is sometimes called ESWL: Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy®.
These are what the words mean:
- extracorporeal: from outside the body
- shock waves: pressure waves
- lithotripsy
So, SWL describes a nonsurgical technique for treating stones in the kidney or ureter using high-energy shock waves. Stones are broken into stone dust or fragments that are small enough to pass in urine. lf large pieces remain, another treatment can be performed
Don’t Miss: Can Drinking Cause Kidney Stones
How Is Pyelonephritis Treated
Dogs with pyelonephritis are usually treated as outpatients unless they have bacteria circulating in their blood causing , or they have clinical signs of kidney failure. The specific treatment of pyelonephritis depends on the underlying cause. If dogs with pyelonephritis also have kidney disease, part of their treatment will include a kidney support nutritional profile .
Ectopic ureters are repositioned surgically to properly drain urine into the bladder. Blockage of the upper urinary tract by a urinary tract stone in a dog with bacterial infection/inflammation of the kidneys may rapidly progress to generalized disease and septicemia. This is a medical emergency and is most often treated with surgery.
Antibiotics to treat pyelonephritis are chosen based on testing the urine for bacteria and antibiotic sensitivity. The chosen antibiotic should kill bacteria, be present at appropriate levels in the blood and in the urine, and should not be toxic to the kidneys. Antibiotics are generally given for 4-6 weeks to treat pyelonephritis.
Southeastern Massachusetts Dialysis Group
Convenient dialysis locations in Southeastern Massachusetts with modern and comfortable equipment and a highly caring and professional staff.
Taunton Regional Dialysis Center & Brockton Regional Kidney Center receive Five Star Rating by CMS for being in the top 10% of all dialysis facilities nationwide!
Also Check: Can You Smoke After Donating A Kidney
What Causes A Kidney Infection
Kidney infections are caused by bacteria or viruses.
Scientists believe that most kidney infections start as a bladder infection that moves upstream to infect one or both of your kidneys. Most often, the infection is caused by bacteria that normally live in your bowel. The urinary tract has several ways to prevent infection from moving up the urinary tract. For example, urination most often flushes out bacteria before it reaches the bladder. Sometimes your body cant fight the bacteria and the bacteria cause a UTI. If you dont get medical treatment to stop the infection, the bacteria may infect your kidneys.
In some cases, your blood can carry bacteria or viruses from another part of your body to your kidneys.
Are There Tests That Can Be Done To Tell If I Have Kidney Disease
Yes. The diagnosis is based on the presence of abnormal amounts of protein in the urine. A variety of tests can be done to tell if a person has kidney disease, such as serum creatinine and BUN . The most widely used are serum creatinine and BUN . These are not very sensitive tests because they do not begin to change until the patient develops more severe disease. Other more sensitive tests are: creatinine clearance, glomerular filtration rate and urine albumin. Estimated of glomerular filtration rate is considered a better measure of kidney function compared to creatinine. Urinary albumin-to-creatinine ration is also used to check for high protein in the urine , which is a sign of kidney disease.
In patients with Type I diabetes, a diagnosis of early kidney disease can be based on the presence of very small amounts of protein in the urine . Special methods are needed to measure these small amounts of protein. When the amount of protein in the urine becomes large enough to be detected by standard tests, the patient is said to have âclinicalâ diabetic kidney disease.
Donât Miss: Does Water Cleanse The Kidneys
Recommended Reading: Where Are My Kidneys In My Body
Choose Foods With The Right Amount Of Potassium
When your kidneys are not working well, your potassium level may be too high or too low. Having too much or too little potassium can cause muscle cramps, problems with the way your heart beats and muscle weakness.
If you have kidney disease, your doctor or dietitian may tell you to lower the amount of potassium in your eating plan.
Use the lists below to learn foods that are low or high in potassium.
Foods low in potassium
- Apples, cranberries, grapes, pineapples and strawberries
- Cauliflower, onions, peppers, radishes, summer squash and lettuce
- Pita, tortillas and white breads
- Beef and chicken
- Avocados, bananas, melons, oranges, prunes and raisins
- Artichokes, winter squash, plantains, spinach, potatoes and tomatoes
- Bran products and granola
- Beans
- Brown or wild rice
What Is Renal Failure
Renal failure refers to temporary or permanent damage to the kidneys that results in loss of normal kidney function. There are two different types of renal failure–acute and chronic. Acute renal failure has an abrupt onset and is potentially reversible. Chronic renal failure progresses slowly over at least three months and can lead to permanent renal failure. The causes, symptoms, treatments, and outcomes of acute and chronic are different.
Conditions that may lead to acute or chronic renal failure may include, but are not limited to, the following:
Don’t Miss: Can Prednisone Affect Your Kidneys
Are There Any Foods Or Drinks That Help Treat Kidney Stones Are There Any Home Remedies
There are three liquids rumored to help with kidney stones:
- Cranberry juice. Although cranberry juice can help prevent urinary tract infections , it doesnt help with kidney stones.
- Apple cider vinegar. Vinegar is acidic and it can sometimes create changes to your urine, which helps with kidney stones. But, this doesnt always help. Talk to your healthcare provider about the use of vinegar.
- Lemon juice. Lemon juice is rich in citrate, which can help prevent kidney stones from forming. Citrates are found in several citrus fruits including lemons, limes, oranges and melons.
- Coffee. Studies show that coffee may decrease your risk of developing kidney stones.
Avoid soda and other drinks with added sugar or fructose corn syrup. They increase your risk.
How Much Protein Does Your Body Need
People who do not yet need to have dialysis should be careful to get the right amount of protein not too much, but also not too little. Several studies have shown that in some people, a low-protein diet can delay the progression of chronic kidney disease and prevent complications. There is not yet enough to say whether other types of diets might also have these positive effects. But it’s important to make sure that you don’t get too little protein either, because our bodies start breaking down the protein in our muscles if we don’t get enough protein in our diet.
According to current recommendations, people should get about 0.8 to 1 gram of protein in their daily diet for each kilogram of normal weight. So if you weigh about 70 kilograms, this would mean you would ideally get about 60 grams of protein in your diet. To give you an idea of how much that is: A single beef steak typically has about 45 grams of protein in it, a hard-boiled egg has about 13 grams in it, and an apple has less than 0.5 grams in it.
People who are on dialysis will need more protein, though. People who are on hemodialysis are advised to get at least 1.1 grams of protein in their daily diet per kilogram of body weight, and those who are on peritoneal dialysis should get up to 1.5 grams per day and kilo. The reason why more protein is needed for peritoneal dialysis is because a lot of protein is lost to the dialysis fluid through the peritoneum.
Don’t Miss: Where’s Your Kidneys In Your Back
What Should I Know About Januvia Vs Metformin
Metformin is an active drug ingredient. It comes as a generic drug. Januvia is a brand-name drug that contains the ingredient sitagliptin.
Metformin is one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for type 2 diabetes. But it works differently than Januvia.
Sometimes, doctors prescribe both metformin and Januvia to manage diabetes. Depending on the prescribed doses of each drug, a doctor might prescribe the combination drug called Janumet. Janumet contains both metformin and sitagliptin.
If youd like to learn about the similarities and differences between Januvia and metformin, see this article. Talk with your doctor to see which drug is better for you.
Can A Uti Cause Bloating And Weight Gain
A urinary tract infection is an infection that has spread to the bladder, urethra, kidneys, or ureters __% __% of women will get at least one UTI, and many will get more than one UTI. A UTI is caused by bacteria that travel up the urethra and get into the bladder. The infection can spread to the kidneys or other areas of the urinary tract. The bladder, kidneys, and ureters are part of the urinary tract. The urinary tract is part of the digestive system..
Don’t Miss: How To Treat Kidney Infection
Testing To Determine The Cause
If you have symptoms of decreased appetite and weight loss, then your health care provider will perform a physical examination and may carry out other tests to find out what is causing the symptoms.1,2 If you also have problems or changes related to urination, then laboratory tests may be used on a sample of your urine to check for signs of infection or other issues. Cystoscopy is a procedure that may be used to examine the inside of the bladder and the urethra the tube-like organ that connects to the bladder and allows urine to be excreted and can also be used to take tissue samples for further testing.
Causes Of Nephrotic Syndrome
Some of the causes of nephrotic syndrome include:
- changes to the immune system nephrotic syndrome due to changes to the immune system is most common in children. It is called minimal change disease because the kidney filters appear normal under a microscope. The cause is thought to be changes in certain cells of the immune system. The function of the kidneys is normal and the outlook for recovery is usually excellent
- inflammation local inflammation or swelling damages and scars the kidney filters. Examples of this are focal segmental glomerulosclerosis and membranous nephropathy. Treatment may not resolve the condition, and the kidneys may gradually lose their ability to filter wastes and excess water from the blood
- other health conditions, which can lead to secondary nephrotic syndrome this can be caused by certain conditions including diabetes, drugs, cancer and systemic lupus erythematosus .
Don’t Miss: Are Nuts Bad For Kidney Stones
What Are The Symptoms Of Bad Kidneys
It may come as a surprise that chronic kidney disease can be active in the body for years. Symptoms of bad kidneys tend are typically not readily observable until the disease progresses. Unlike acute kidney failure, which comes on quickly due to a severe injury, kidney failure from CKD is a gradual process.
Through the first three of the five kidney disease stages, symptoms are usually so subtle that blood tests, urine tests, and/or CT scans are necessary for a diagnosis. In stages 1 and 2, evidence of the disease is most often limited to the presence of proteins in the urine and elevated amounts of creatinine in the bloodstream.
Its important to bring a thorough list of your symptoms to your doctor, so they can order the correct tests and provide an accurate diagnosis.
Most symptoms dont manifest until the disease has reached its advanced stages. Once they do, they usually cantand shouldnt beignored. When experienced in isolation, several of the following symptoms may have causes other than kidney disease. In the late stages of CKD, however, many symptoms may appear at the same time, and they will have a direct connection to significant loss of kidney function.
Here are some of the most common symptoms of bad kidneys that you may experience if you have chronic kidney disease.
Signs Of A Kidney Infection
What does a kidney infection feel like? According to the NIDDK, the most common kidney infections symptoms are:
Nausea
Vomiting
But depending on a persons age, they may not experience all of these kidney infection symptoms. Children younger than two may only experience high fever as a sign of kidney infections, the NIDDK says, and people older than 65 might only present with cognitive issues, like confusion, hallucinations, and disorganized speech.
Read Also: How Do You Treat Low Kidney Function
Kidney Disease And Weight Loss
Kidney Disease and Weight Loss was written by Jen Hernandez RDN, CSR, LDN. Jen is a Registered Dietitian and Board-Certified in Renal Nutrition at Plant Powdered Kidneys.
While many people spend time, money, and effort towards weight loss, some lose weight simply from a diagnosis of kidney disease. And while kidney disease and weight loss arent always thought of as being intertwined, weight loss can be a crucial factor to pay attention to when caring for your kidneys.
How Is The Infection Spread
It is difficult to spread a UTI between individuals, as the type of bacteria causing the infection is almost never contagious.
The most common way that a UTI is contracted is through the movement of bacteria from the anus to the urethra, either when wiping after going to the toilet or during sexual intercourse. Taking care during each of these activities can help to prevent the transfer of bacteria, which may then have the opportunity to overgrow.
Vigorous sexual intercourse may also lead to symptoms of UTI or cystitis in women , although there may be no bacteria present.
Also Check: What Do You Do If You Have Kidney Stones
Do I Need To See A Doctor
Yes. Painful urination can be a symptom of a more serious problem. You should tell your doctor about your symptoms and how long youve had them. Tell your doctor about any medical conditions you have, such as diabetes mellitus or AIDS, because these could affect your bodys response to infection. Tell your doctor about any known abnormality in your urinary tract, and if you are or might be pregnant. Tell your doctor if youve had any procedures or surgeries on your urinary tract. He or she also need to know if you were recently hospitalized or stayed in a nursing home.
If your doctor thinks your pain may be from vaginal inflammation, he or she may wipe the lining of your vagina with a swab to collect mucus. The mucus will be looked at under a microscope to see if it has yeast or other organisms. If your pain is from an infection in your urethra , your doctor may swab it to test for bacteria. If an infection cant be found, your doctor may suggest other tests.