Diabetic nephropathy: symptoms, treatment and complications
Continues from part 2 (How I’ve reversed my type 2 diabetes)
Symptoms of diabetic nephropathy
A lot of people doesn’t show any symptom with diabetic nephropathy.
Only when the function of the kidneys gets worse, you will see the following symptoms:
- Poor appetite
- A Sleeping problem
- Nausea and weakness
- Itching
- Swelling on hand, face and feet
- Drowsiness
- Muscle twitching
Late symptoms of kidney disease in patient
- The level of blood urea nitrogen and the level of creatinine rise in your blood
- Nausea, vomiting, muscle cramp and anemia
- You may need less insulin
How the disease develop and progress?
When the glucose level rise in people with diabetes, the level of some chemicals within the kidney will also rise. These chemicals make glomeruli, which will allow the albumin to leak into the urine. In addition to that, the raised glucose level will get linked to some proteins in glomeruli. Then it takes several years to cause glomerulosclerosis. When the condition becomes worse, kidneys slowly lose their ability to filter the blood. This will gradually lead to kidney failure.
How many diabetic patients can have this disease?
About 30% of patients suffering from Type 1Type 1 diabetes and 40% of patients suffering from Type 2 diabetes can eventually suffer from kidney failure. Around one in five people doing dialysis has this disease.
How is the disease diagnosed?
Diabetic nephropathy is diagnosed by finding protein in the urine. Diabetic patients should get their urine tested periodically. Urine test can detect how much albumin is present in urine. A blood test will also show how well the kidneys are working. If your kidneys are not working properly, the level of creatinine in blood will go up. It also depends upon your age and sex.
Possible complications which can occur
People suffering from diabetic kidney disease can show certain symptoms that may increase the risk of developing these conditions.
- A poor control over blood sugar level
- Overweight
- High blood pressure
The possible complications are given below:
Cardiovascular disease – people suffering from diabetes have increased risk of developing cardiovascular problems such as heart disease and stroke. If you are suffering from diabetes, the risk for kidney disease is higher.
High blood pressure – kidney disease has the tendency to increase blood pressure and this can make the situation of the diabetic kidney patient worse. Treatment for blood pressure has to be taken on time.
Kidney failure – the end stage of kidney diabetes disease is kidney failure and this happens in people after 10 years. If this occurs, you would need to do dialysis or kidney transplant.
Treatment to be taken
Treatment has to be taken on time to reduce the risk of kidney failure and in turn reducing the risk of heart disease or stroke. There are several types of medications available. Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors would reduce the amount of chemicals present in the bloodstream. ACE inhibitors are drugs used to treat high blood pressure and they can delay the progression of kidney disease. Angiotensin-II receptor antagonist works the similar way of ACE inhibitors. If you have side effects, one may use them instead of ACE inhibitors. You must have good control over your blood glucose level and blood pressure. You must aim to maintain your HbA 1c to less than 48mmol. You must lower your blood pressure level below 130/80 mm Hg.
About the Author
Michaelw Hi, my name is Michael and in this blog I'm gonna share the story of how I got off kidney dialysis for good. Getting off dialysis isn't easy at all, and that's why I'm trying to help people as much as I can.
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