Causes of Anemia in Chronic Renal Failure

Written by Wu Ji
Nephrology
Updated on September 10, 2024
00:00
00:00

The causes of anemia in chronic renal failure, also known as renal anemia, occur in chronic kidney disease and are related to chronic renal failure. There are multiple reasons for this anemia, such as the lack of raw materials for red blood cell production caused by chronic renal failure, including deficiencies in iron, folic acid, and vitamin B1, shortened lifespan of red blood cells, and blood loss including non-gastrointestinal blood loss. Moreover, uremic toxins including parathyroid hormone can suppress the production of red blood cells in the bone marrow. However, the primary cause is the decreased production of erythropoietin by the kidneys during chronic renal failure.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
42sec home-news-image

Why does chronic renal failure cause vomiting?

Patients with chronic renal failure who experience vomiting generally indicates that their condition has become very severe. Typically, from stage four of chronic kidney disease onwards, a large amount of metabolic waste accumulates in the body, and patients may have severe metabolic acidosis, among other issues. These conditions can cause edema of the gastrointestinal mucosa, and these metabolic wastes can also irritate the gastrointestinal tract, leading to symptoms like nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite. Of course, besides these reasons, other gastrointestinal diseases such as chronic gastritis, gastric ulcers, and even gastric cancer should also be ruled out.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
41sec home-news-image

What should I do about edema from chronic renal failure?

Chronic renal failure often leads to edema, which is a common symptom associated with the decreased ability of the kidneys to excrete water, resulting in significant water retention in the body. There are two treatment options for this disease. First, medication can be used, typically diuretics such as loop diuretics. After administration, the patient's urine output increases, which can help reduce edema. Second, for patients who do not respond well to medication, and in cases where edema leads to heart failure or pulmonary edema, dialysis treatment may be considered. Through dialysis ultrafiltration and dehydration, edema can also be alleviated.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhang Hui
Nephrology
41sec home-news-image

Chronic renal failure anemia treatment

Patients with chronic renal failure generally have anemia combined with stage three or above of chronic kidney disease (CKD). When the hemoglobin falls below 100 grams per liter, it is necessary to start treatment to correct anemia. At this point, relevant lab tests should be conducted to check for abnormalities in folate, vitamin B12, ferritin, and serum iron levels, and specific treatments should be administered accordingly. Treatments generally include iron supplements, erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, folate, and vitamin B12 to help correct anemia.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
49sec home-news-image

Chronic renal failure inevitably has symptoms.

Patients with chronic kidney failure do not necessarily have symptoms, and the symptoms of each patient are not exactly the same. Chronic kidney failure refers to the damage to the kidneys by various chronic kidney diseases, eventually leading to the kidneys' inability to adequately excrete metabolic waste, causing the accumulation of water and metabolic waste in the body. This leads to disturbances in the patient's electrolytes and may also present clinical symptoms such as anemia and hypertension. However, not all patients feel discomfort, so chronic kidney failure is also known as the silent killer. If a patient undergoes a blood test, it will show an increase in blood creatinine and urea nitrogen, which is the only common feature among all patients with chronic kidney failure.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
45sec home-news-image

Chronic kidney failure is not contagious.

Chronic kidney failure is not contagious. Strictly speaking, chronic kidney failure is not an independent disease; it is a state of disease. It refers to various causes that damage the kidneys, leading to the loss of kidney tissue, and ultimately, the kidneys lose their ability to perform excretory functions. This state is called chronic kidney failure. Chronic kidney failure itself is not contagious. Contagious diseases involve some type of pathogen, whereas the common causes of chronic kidney failure include chronic nephritis, diabetes, kidney diseases, hypertensive nephropathy, etc. None of these diseases are contagious, hence chronic kidney failure is also not contagious.