Kidney failure is caused due to numerous reasons, however, as per the survey conducted by the National Kidney Foundation, the two most common causes of kidney failure are high blood pressure and diabetes.
Loss of blood flow to the kidney: Kidney failure can be a result of loss of blood flow to the kidney. A few conditions that can lead to this condition include heart attack, chronic heart disease, liver failure, acute dehydration, severe burns, allergic reactions, escalated cases of infection (sepsis), scarring of the liver, etc. In some cases, anti-inflammatory medications and high blood pressure can also limit blood flow to the kidneys.
Urine elimination problems: When the body finds it difficult to eliminate urine toxins, the kidneys get overloaded. Some cancers can block the urine passageways, such as prostate, colon, cervical, bladder, etc. Other conditions that can interfere with urination and lead to kidney failure include kidney stones, blood clots, enlarged prostate, and damaged nerves that control the bladder.
Other causes: Some other factors that lead to kidney failure include infection (sepsis), heavy metal poisoning, consumption of excessive drugs and alcohol, vasculitis, lupus, scleroderma, diabetes, intake of chemotherapy drugs, etc.
Stages of Kidney Disease and Failure
Stage 1: The stage is mild with minimal or no visible symptoms. This stage can be managed by maintaining a healthy lifestyle. You need to introduce work out and a balanced diet and stop the consumption of tobacco and alcohol to improve the condition.
Stage 2: This stage is still a mild form but a few of the visible symptoms, including protein in urine or pain in the stomach can be observed. The same lifestyle approaches as followed in stage 1.
Stage 3: At this stage, the kidneys stop functioning the way they should. Therefore, the symptoms become more evident in this stage, such as swelling and pain in the feet, decreased urine frequency, etc. You should immediately consult a doctor and consider medications along with a healthy lifestyle to cure this phase.
Stage 4: This stage of kidney disease is considered moderate to severe. Although, in this stage, the kidneys stop functioning well it cannot be considered a kidney failure yet. In this stage, the evident kidney failure symptoms might include anemia, high blood pressure, etc.
Stage 5: In this stage, the kidneys are approaching failure or in complete failure. In such a condition, you will develop vomiting, nausea, breathing difficulties, and all other evident symptoms. At this stage, you will need dialysis or a kidney transplant.
Treatment of Kidney Failure
When you noticed kidney failure symptoms and the doctor diagnoses it as the last stage, you need to opt for any of the following below treatments associated with this condition:
Dialysis: In this process, the blood is filtered and purified using a machine. This machine acts as a kidney. The doctors usually advise a low potassium and low salt diet while undergoing dialysis. However, you must know that dialysis is not a cure for kidney failure and it can extend your life if timely dialysis is scheduled along with proper medications.
Kidney transplant: In this process, the failed kidney is replaced with a donor kidney that is compatible with your body. After this surgery, the patient mostly does not require dialysis. However, this is a very critical surgery and you have to consume immunosuppressant drugs so that the body does not reject the kidney.