Kidney Embolization Procedure, Side Effects and Recovery Rate

Kidney Embolization came into news recently when First lady Melania Trump underwent surgery on May 14, 2018, to treat a benign kidney condition. During that time a number of people wanted to know more about how and why of Kidney Embolization. Now most of the people know that it is deliberate blocking of blood supply to kidney, but very less people know that why is it necessary, how is it done, what are the recovery rates and if there are some side effects of this procedure.

What is Kidney Embolization ?

It is deliberate blocking of the blood vessel (usually artery), to stop blood supply to whole kidney or a portion of it. It is done using gelfoam, PVA granules or metallic coils. Any one of these blocking objects is inserted through a minimal invasive surgery by making a small cut in the groin region and then inserting a catheter into the blood vessel. The catheter is then moved by using the live x-ray on the TV screen and guided to reach the kidney artery where embolization is required. As it reaches the target site, embolization agent is injected to block the blood vessel. Kidney Embolization is also known as Renal Arterial Embolization, RAE in short.

When do we need Kidney Embolization ?

• Sometimes it is done before a kidney surgery, so that blood flow to the kidney can be stopped prior to surgery for minimal blood loss.
• If the surgery is not possible at the site of tumor (inside or near kidney), then Kidney Embolization is done to stop blood supply to the tumor and stop its further growth.
• Sometimes kidney cancer patients also undergo Kidney Embolization to cut blood supply to cancerous tumors to get relief from symptoms.
• Kidney Embolization is also done prior to kidney transplant.

Before Kidney Embolization
Four hours prior to the procedure you will not be given any solid food to eat. Two hours before procedure you will also be restricted to drink any fluid. Some blood tests and urine test will be done to test your general condition and any urine infection. A small tube will be put into your veins to give you fluids directly.
After Kidney Embolization
You will need to lie on your back for at least four hours after the procedure. A urinary catheter will be placed into your urethra to drain urine from your bladder. Your nurse will keep checking your puncture site for any inflammation or infection. If everything remains OK then head side of your bed will be elevated for next 2 hours. You may be given some intravenous pain killers to give some relief.

How long you will be hospitalized after the procedure ?
It depends on your overall treatment. If you have also undergone some surgery after kidney embolization, then hospitalization time depends on that as well. If you were hospitalized only for kidney embolization and everything goes well, then you may be allowed to leave bed after 6 hours of completion of procedure.

Side Effects of Kidney Embolization

• You may experience pain in kidney region as the blood supply is cut. Intensity of pain depends on how much kidney is facing blood shortage. Pain relievers are given to give relief from such pain.
• Sometimes infection may occur at the puncture site, so doctors keep monitoring that site regularly after the procedure.
• Some side effects of kidney embolization can occur after few days or weeks. It may include pain, fever, nausea and vomiting.   
• Some minor side effects may go away on their own, but if they don't then consult your specialist doctor.
• Sometimes blockages can occur in non-target areas which can create complications.

Kidney Embolization Recovery Rate

• 90% of Kidney Embolization are done successfully without any major or minor complication in US. Worldwide success rate is 85%.  
• Kidney Embolization has prolonged survival time of  T2 and T3 Renal Cancer patients.

Note: Kidney Embolization is just one procedure out of many to treat some complicated medical conditions. However it is a non surgical procedure which includes just a puncture in groin area, but it has helped a lot in some surgical procedures as well.

Read More

Kidney Disease Stages and Symptoms with Life Expectancy

Kidney Disease is a condition when one or both kidneys face certain lack of efficiency in filtering the blood. Kidney Disease is also know by names such as CKD (Chronic Kidney Disease) or Chronic Renal Failure. It can happen due to various other medical conditions over a large period of time. Sometime some medicine meant to treat other diseases can put harm to kidney function as a side effect. The damage to kidneys can be put into 5 different stages. Different stages of Kidney disease have different symptoms and stage 5 is considered as worst where life expectancy is greatly reduced.

Usually Kidney Failure doesn't happen at once. It happens in different stages as the condition worsens. Symptoms of different stages are different and symptoms worsens as the stage of Kidney Disease increase.

Kidney Disease Stage 1 and 2 Symptoms

Stage 1 and 2 of Kidney Disease are generally considered as early stages, hence the symptoms are generally mild and not noticed as something serious. People often take them as symptom of some other disease. During first 2 stages of Kidney Disease, the efficiency of Kidneys may get reduced to just 50%. Some symptoms of Kidney Disease Stage 1 and 2 are:

• There are no physical symptoms in these stages.
• Heavy Proteinuria: It means proteins from blood leak into urine due to damaged filters in kidney. It makes the urine more foamy. However this symptoms can also occur due to some other diseases and drugs as well.
• Blood in Urine: This symptom can also occur in some other diseases like UTI.
• In some cases blood pressure may also rise due to Kidney Disease.
• Anemia may also occur in some rare cases. 

Kidney Disease Stage 3 and 4 Symptoms

During Stage 3 and 4 the efficiency of kidneys get reduced to just 30%. 

• Tiredness and fatigue are common in these stages.
• Physical symptoms like puffiness around eyes, swelling in hands, feet and ankles.
• Back pain can be felt in lower back on either side.
• Color, amount and frequency of urination will change.
• Eating pattern changes naturally and food starts tasting funny.
• Blood Pressure remains elevated.
• Serum creatinine will be higher in these stages, which can be found by blood tests.

Kidney Disease Stage 5 Symptoms

Stage 5 of Kidney Disease is End-Stage and also known as Kidney Failure or Renal Failure. In this stage the kidney function is reduced to just 10 to 15%. Symptoms become severe and doctors often recommend dialysis and kidney transplant. Symptoms of Stage 5 of Kidney Disease include symptoms of all previous stages and some more symptoms listed here:

• Headache
• Lower mental alertness / Confusion
• Difficulty in breathing
• Decreased urine output. However in some cases urine output increase, but that urine is more like plain water and no body wastes are expelled through it.
• Itching in Skin and Eyes
• Skin color changes to grayish or yellowish complexion.
• Swelling and puffiness increases more than previous stages.

Kidney Disease and Life Expectancy

Life expectancy is not an issue in first 4 stages of Kidney Disease, if proper treatment and lifestyle changes are adopted by the patient. But if the patient has entered stage 5 of Kidney Disease then life span may get reduced. As stated earlier that stage 5 is considered as end stage in which both kidneys have almost failed and the only option left is either dialysis or transplant. Life Expectancy of those who undergo dialysis also depends on other medical conditions they are suffering from. The average life expectancy of patients on dialysis is 5 to 10 years, if they continue to have dialysis as suggested by their specialist. However some patients have lived for 20 to 30 years on dialysis. If a person decides to not to undergo dialysis then life expectancy reduces to just a few weeks.

Read More

What causes Kidney Disease and How to Prevent it

Kidney Disease is a medical condition in which the patient faces gradual loss of kidney function. Symptoms of this disease are often not understood and the person keeps living the same life without any treatment. He/she knows that only when Kidney Failure has happened in the final stages of this disease. At that moment doctors either recommend dialysis or kidney transplant. To prevent such things from happening it is better to take care of your health and get some knowledge about the causes of Kidney Disease and how you can prevent it from happening.

What causes Kidney Disease ?

• High Blood Pressure and Diabetes are themselves responsible for more than 60% cases of Kidney Disease.
• High Blood Pressure against the arterial walls affect the functioning of Kidney. Blood Pressure is a factor that helps kidneys in filtration of blood. Excess pressure of blood in kidneys reduces their working capability.
• High Blood Sugar level in Diabetes damages different organs including Kidneys due to neuropathy and atherosclerosis. Neuropathy is damage of nerves due to high blood sugar, which can affect most of the organs but kidney and eyes are most prone to it. Atherosclerosis is damage to arteries due to blood sugar, which can affect kidneys very badly if the sugar level remains high for long duration.
• Some medicines used to treat other diseases like hypertension, cancer and AIDS can cause Kidney Disease especially when you ignore the side effects of these medicines. 25% of all kidney failure cases can be attributed to such medicines.
• Stones in kidney can also damage the filtering units of kidney, which is a major reason of Kidney Disease in kidney stone patients.
• Repeated Urinary Track Infections can sometimes lead the bacteria to Kidneys which can damage the and cause Kidney Disease.
• In some babies urinary track is not wide enough, which exerts pressure on kidneys and cause kidney damage.
• Polycystic kidney disease is an inherited disease in which large cysts are formed in kidneys which damages the surrounding tissues.
• Enlarged prostate gland in men can obstruct the urinary track and cause kidney disease.
• Inflammation can occur in kidney due to Glomerulonephritis (a group of diseases). It injures glomeruli, which is a part of kidney that filters the blood. It is the third most popular cause of kidney damage.

How to prevent Kidney Disease ?

Living with a healthy lifestyle can prevent Kidney Disease. All the preventive measures mentioned below are part of a living a healthy life. Just adopting them in life can save you from Kidney Disease.

• Keep your blood sugar in check. If you have diabetes then you should plan your diet chart accordingly.
• Always try to keep your resting blood pressure near 120/80 . Low salt and low fat diet can help you with that.
• Make exercise a regular habit. Spare at least 30 minutes daily for that.
• Keep your weight according to your height. Being overweight increases your risk of kidney disease.
• Do not smoke / use tobacco.
• Limit your alcohol intake.

Note: Kidney Disease can result in Kidney Failure, where both kidneys stop functioning, if you don't treat it on time. Kidney Disease can be undone with lifestyle changes and proper treatment. 

Read More

Some Medicines cause Acute Kidney Failure

Yes, you heard it right. Some medicines which are used to treat other medical conditions may result in Acute Kidney Failure. If correct treatment is provided at right time then such Acute Kidney Failure is reversible. Some antibiotics, blood pressure medicines, cancer treatment medicines, medical dyes (used in contrast imaging), HIV medicines, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, ulcer medicines and some illegal drugs (such as heroin) can cause acute kidney failure.

Some common Acute Kidney Failure symptoms are:

• Decreased Urine Output
• Fluid retention, that can cause swelling your legs,ankle and feet.
• Other symptoms like drowsiness, shortness of breath, fatigue, confusion, nausea and chest pain are also common in some other diseases.
• Sometimes there are no visible symptoms but only lab tests can detect kidney failure.

25% of Acute Kidney Failure are attributed to medicines used to treat some other disease. If you ever feel some symptoms of mild kidney failure while taking some medication, then you should discuss it with your doctor.

Some common medicines that are known to cause Acute Kidney Failure are:

• NSAIDS (Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs) such as ibuprofen, naproxen, Motrin, Aleve, and Advil. They reduce blood flow to kidneys which can cause Acute Kidney Failure.
• Diuretics, also known as water pills, changes water balance in body and thus interferes with kidney function. Jardiance (empagliflozin) is a diabetes medicine which also have diuretic effect and may cause kidney failure.
• ACE Inhibitors (such as Lisinopril, Enalaril, and Ramipril) are usually used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure. Names of these medicines usually end with "-il".
• Chemotherapy medicines used for cancer treatment such as cisplatin, carboplatin, and methotrexate.
• Some antibiotics cause swelling in kidney and cause kidney failure.
• Apart from the above mentioned medicines there are numerous others that can cause kidney damage. Some are them are used in treatment of AIDS, cancer, osteoporosis, ulcers and numerous other diseases.

The motive of this article is not mean that you should not take the above listed medicines. Most of the above listed medicines are life saving drugs. But proper usage of these drugs and taking them only on doctor's prescription is necessary if you want to save yourself from any such side effect. Almost all medicines have some side effects associated with them. To save yourself from those side effects it is necessary to take them as prescribed by doctor. You should also keep yourself educated about the medicines you are taking on prescription. Even if you take some vitamin and mineral supplement to keep yourself fit, then you make sure that you know all possible outcomes of that medicine.

Read More

Kidney Transplant and Dialysis Facts

In US there are 123,000 patients waiting for an organ donation. Out of these patients 100,000 are waiting for a kidney. Kidney is the most transplanted organ in medical history. But still only 16000 kidney transplants are done every year. These figures are sufficient to tell the shortage of kidney donors.

Why do one need a Kidney Transplant or Dialysis

Kidney transplant or Dialysis is needed after kidney failure. Till one kidney is arranged, the patient may survive on dialysis. The function of our kidney is to purify the blood by extracting excess fluid, toxins, salts and minerals from it. If this purification is not done then our blood pressure will increase and our bones will become weaker day by day. Shortage of hemoglobin may also occur as hemoglobin is manufactured inside bone marrow. To overcome this thing artificially the blood is purified through machines, which is called Dialysis. It takes 4 to 5 hours for the dialysis to complete and needs to be repeated around thrice per week.

Dialysis vs Kidney Transplant

Dialysis bounds a patient life in certain limits. The patient can't enjoy the life to proper extent as he bound to remain near his dialysis center and visit it every alternative day. If the dialysis expenditure is not covered in your health insurance then it becomes an economic burden as well.
If we compare dialysis to kidney transplant then Kidney transplant is better. But Kidney transplant is not the final step of the treatment. But still Kidney Transplant is the better option. It gives you freedom to a certain extent.
Some patients in US prefer a dialysis machine at home, which gives them certain extent of freedom. But it needs a dedicated operator of the machine who have received the 4-6 weeks dialysis training. Even a family member can receive this training and get it done for you at home.

Facts about Kidney Transplant

• Kidney from a living donor is more successful than from a deceased donor.
• If you are suffering from Diabetes or suffered a heart attack then your doctor might not recommend a transplant for you. Age and health condition is also checked before transplant.
• Before a transplant doctors check if its a match for you (blood group and tissue type). Its transplanted only if it matches you.
• Kidney of a family member has more chances of body acceptance.
• Immunosuppressive drugs are given to patient after a transplant, so that the immune system in body don't reject the new kidney taking it as a foreign material.
• The old deceased kidneys still remains in your body and the new kidney is placed below in the groin region taking blood supply from one of the legs.
• Body of an overweight receiver is less likely to support a new kidney compared to a healthy person. So doctors advice you to keep your BMI index under 30.
• Usually women patients get more offers of kidney donation from family members but still women receive lesser transplants. The reason is that they don't prefer transplant from a living donor.
• Kidney from a living donor starts working immediately, while kidney from a deceased donor may take a few days or weeks to start working. In the mean time the patient may need dialysis.
• The living donor might put his health insurance at stake. In some countries the kidney donor are either not considered suitable for health insurance or they have to pay extra premium amount for their health insurance.
• Only 60% of kidneys received from a living donor works for more than 15 years compared to 50% in case of deceased donor.
• Only 80% of kidneys received from a living donor works for more than 5 years compared to 70% in case of deceased donor.

Read More

Kidney Stones removal Home Remedy Treatment Naturally

A number of people face Kidney Stone problem. A number of theories are there about creation of these stones (crystals) in our kidney, which causes pain while urinating. The patients of this disease are increasing day by day. A number of treatments are available for Kidney Stones Removal. If the size of stones are small then some medicines and dietary changes are recommended to dissolve the stones,  but if the stones are larger then surgery is recommended.

Kidney Stones removal Home Remedy (Treatment Naturally)

However now the surgery has become painless, as it can be done without any incision, but still most of the people try to remove kidney stones without surgery. There are some home remedies and natural treatments are are used by some patients, however doctors don't recommend them as they don't have any scientific evidence to support such treatments. A number of people get benefited through such treatments. Such treatments are also known as Alternative Medicines or Alternative Therapies.

Why do people go for Home Remedies and Natural Treatment of Kidney Stones ?

Alternative Medicines/Therapies, Home Remedies and Natural Treatments are all same things. People believe them because they came to know about it through word of mouth, and word of mouth is believed quickly than an advertisement on Television. Same is with Kidney Stones Removal. Kidney Stones have become a common disease now and so is the treatment. We are not saying that these therapies don't work. They work but not on everybody. People want to get treated for Kidney Stones naturally, because they know that Allopathic medicines have side effects connected with them while natural treatments and home remedies are side-effect free.

Here we are going to tell you about some common home remedies and natural treatment used for Kidney Stones Removal across the world.

• Lemon Juice and Olive Oil: Mix 4 oz of organic olive oil with organic lemon juice (2-2 oz of each). Drink it and then drink 12 ounce glass of purified water. Repeat the process several times a day. Warning: Lemon is acidic in nature and it may damage tooth enamel and cause heartburn and ulcer.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: Add 1/2 lemon and 1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar in 12 oz of purified water. Drink this solution in one go. Repeat it 3 to 4 times per day till the symptoms improve. Warning: Apple Cider Vinegar is rich in citric acid and it can cause the same side effects as the previous remedy. It is more dangerous for patients having BP or Diabetes medication.
• Coke and Asparagus: Aspagarus is diuretic (that makes an urge to pass out urine) and Coke contains phosphoric acid which can help in dissolving kidney stones. Warning: Some researches have found that it can worsen the condition.
• Lab Grade Chanca Piedra: It is a weed also known by a common name "Stone Breaker". Its name is based upon its traditional usage in breaking kidney stones. It is also available in form of capsules. I tried to find its reviews on Webmd and found that most of the patients are benefited by its usage.
• Beer: Some people drink more beer as a home remedy to dissolve kidney stones.
• Fruits and Herbs: Some fruits and herbs are known for better effect on Kidney stones such as Watermelon, Pomegranate, Basil and Wheatgrass. 
• Basil Tea: Basil is an important herb according to Ayurveda. Just chewing 2-3 leaves of basil on daily basis can a person healthy. Basil Tea is considered as a remedy for Kidney stones. Just boil 5-6 basil leaves in water for 10 minutes and then add some honey in it ! Your basil tea is ready.

Note: None of these treatments are used by us and we don't bear any type of responsibility of these treatments. So its better to research more before starting any of these treatments.

Read More

Cleanse your Kidneys Naturally (Natural Kidney Detoxification)

Our Kidneys are the filters in our body. They extract impurities from blood (like excess salt, unwanted bacteria, excess water) and pass it out through urine. If you want to live a long and healthy life, then its very important keep your kidneys in a healthy state. However our body keep cleaning all important organs in our body through some natural process. But you can help your body to cleanse or detoxify your Kidneys by using some natural treatments. These methods to cleanse your Kidneys are completely normal and don't have any side effects.

Coriander Leaves

Coriander Leaves is an easily available product to cleanse your kidneys naturally. Follow the following steps to cleanse your kidneys.

• Take a bunch of Coriander leaves and cut it into small pieces.
• Pour some water into it and boil it for 10 Minutes
• Let it cool down and then extract the water into a bottle.
• Keep that bottle in refrigerator and drink one glass daily.

After drinking it you will notice the toxins coming out in your urine naturally. It is one of the most economical ways to cleanse your kidneys.

You may also use Parsley leaves instead of Coriander leaves if its available in your locality. Both of them are nearly identical in size and shape and most of the nutrients are same in them.

Read More