Anyone who has diabetes or high blood pressure should be aware that these conditions could lead to chronic kidney disease, and even to kidney failure. In fact, diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure, and high blood pressure is the second leading cause. Diabetes and high blood pressure account for 70 percent of all cases of kidney failure in African Americans, and African Americans are four times more likely than whites to experience kidney failure.
The good news is that kidney failure doesn’t happen overnight. Instead, it usually occurs only after kidney damage has taken place over years, or even decades. By taking some precautions and monitoring your health, you can greatly reduce your risk of kidney failure.
Your Kidneys
Most people don’t stop to think about their kidneys, yet life depends on them. These fist-sized organs are located on either side of the spine at about waist height, and they play a crucial role in maintaining health.
One vital function of the kidneys is to filter waste products from the blood. Every two minutes, the body’s entire blood supply circulates through the kidneys, where the blood is filtered. Cleansed blood flows back to the heart, and waste products are filtered out into the urine. In addition to filtering waste, the kidneys control the amount of fluid in the body, help regulate blood pressure, and aid in production of red blood cells and healthy bones.
Chronic Kidney Disease and Kidney Failure
Chronic kidney disease is a condition in which a person’s kidneys are not working as well as they should. Eventually, the damage from chronic kidney disease can lead to kidney failure. When a person has kidney failure, it means their kidneys are not working well enough to keep the person alive, and the only options are dialysis treatment or a kidney transplant.
More than 7.4 million adults in the United States over age 20 have chronic kidney disease. That’s 4.5 percent of the population. There are currently 400,000 Americans who have progressed to kidney failure and are being kept alive through dialysis or kidney transplants. Kidney failure occurs disproportionately among African Americans, who make up 12 percent of the U.S. population but account for 30 percent of people with kidney failure. More than 75,000 people die from kidney failure each year. Kidney disease is America’s ninth leading cause of death.
With early diagnosis and treatment, chronic kidney disease can be slowed and kidney failure may be avoided. Without treatment, chronic kidney disease can become kidney failure with little or no warning.
Early chronic kidney disease usually has no symptoms. Chronic kidney disease sometimes develops so slowly that many patients don’t realize they are sick until the disease is advanced and they are rushed to the hospital for life-saving dialysis. The only way to find out if you have chronic kidney disease is to have some simple medical tests. The tests include a urine test for protein and a blood test for creatinine. Your doctor uses these tests to figure out a number called your GFR (glomerular filtration rate). The GFR number measures how well your kidneys work.
Your doctor should be able to explain exactly what your GFR number means.
The treatment goal for a person with chronic kidney disease is to slow down or stop the damage to the kidneys. It is very important for a person with chronic kidney disease to control their blood pressure, control their blood sugar if they are diabetic, avoid certain medicines, and follow a special diet that a doctor or dietitian can explain.
You can lower your risk of chronic kidney disease and kidney failure by living a healthy lifestyle: eat low-fat, low-salt foods, exercise regularly, limit alcohol intake and don’t smoke.
Support
The American Kidney Fund is our nation’s leading voluntary health organization serving people with and at risk for kidney disease through direct financial assistance, comprehensive education, clinical research and community service programs. The Fund was founded in 1971, to help a single individual with kidney failure pay for dialysis. Over 30 years later, the Fund has become the leading source of direct financial aid to chronic kidney disease patients across the nation.
The Fund runs a program called MIKE (Minority Intervention and Kidney Education) which addresses the high rates of kidney disease in African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans and Asian-Americans by providing prevention strategies through comprehensive kidney disease education, diagnostic screening, resource referral, and supportive followup.
For more information about the American Kidney Fund, kidney disease, or MIKE, visit www.kidneyfund.org, call our nationwide toll-free “Help Line” at 800-638-8299 or e-mail helpline@kidneyfund.org.