Chronic renal failure inevitably has symptoms.

Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
Updated on September 29, 2024
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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.

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Written by Zhang Hui
Nephrology
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What should I do about coughing caused by chronic kidney failure?

Patients with chronic renal failure who experience coughing should first analyze whether it is caused by an infection. In such cases, routine blood tests and chest CT scans are needed to confirm whether there are any infectious lesions in the lungs. Additionally, it should be checked whether the patient has systemic lupus erythematosus, vasculitis, or other conditions, as these diseases can affect the lungs and cause pulmonary lesions leading to coughing. Therefore, treatment should be targeted based on the cause. If the cough is due to an infection, antibiotics are required, but the dosage must be adjusted according to the patient's kidney function. If the cough is due to pulmonary changes caused by a systemic disease, targeted treatment for the systemic disease is needed.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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Chronic Renal Failure Treatment Plan

The treatment of chronic renal failure primarily requires a clear understanding of the cause, and treatment targeting the cause is essential to slow the progression of chronic renal failure. The most common causes of chronic renal failure are diabetes, hypertension, and chronic nephritis. Therefore, for patients with chronic renal failure caused by diabetes, insulin is often needed to control blood sugar. For patients with hypertensive kidney disease, antihypertensive drugs are certainly necessary to control blood pressure. However, in the early stages of renal failure, ACE inhibitors or ARBs are the preferred choices. For patients with chronic nephritis in the early stages, corticosteroid medications are required for treatment. However, if the serum creatinine has already exceeded 256 micromoles per liter, treatment then focuses mainly on managing complications, and corticosteroids are no longer used. (Please use medications under the guidance of a doctor.)

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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Can chronic kidney failure CKD5 be cured?

The so-called CKD refers to chronic kidney disease. According to the glomerular filtration rate, CKD is divided into 5 stages, where stage 5 means that the patient's glomerular filtration rate has fallen below 15 milliliters per minute, which is equivalent to uremia. Chronic renal failure is irreversible and cannot be recovered, so it is impossible for patients whose condition has progressed to later stages to recover. Therefore, for such conditions, the only option is to choose renal replacement therapy so that the patient can survive. Renal replacement therapy mainly includes hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, or kidney transplantation.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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Can chronic renal failure reproduce?

Patients with chronic renal failure, if they are male, can attempt to conceive under the guidance of a clinic doctor after discontinuing the use of medications that affect fertility; usually, there are no major issues for male patients. However, for female patients, attempting to get pregnant carries a significant risk because pregnancy increases the burden on all organs, including the kidneys, which can exacerbate kidney diseases, especially in cases like lupus nephritis. Nevertheless, not all patients with chronic renal failure are absolutely unable to conceive; some have successfully managed the risks associated with pregnancy. In such cases, it is necessary to weigh the pros and cons.

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Written by Wu Ji
Nephrology
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Symptoms of chronic renal failure

The clinical symptoms of chronic renal failure vary at different stages. In the compensatory and early decompensatory stages of chronic renal failure, patients may experience no symptoms or only mild discomforts such as fatigue, back pain, and increased nocturia, while a few may suffer from reduced appetite, metabolic acidosis, and mild anemia. The main clinical symptoms include disorders of water, electrolyte, and acid-base balance, presenting metabolic acidosis, sodium retention or hypovolemia, or hyponatremia, along with hyperkalemia. Moreover, there are significant manifestations of excess phosphorus and calcium deficiency. Patients may also experience disruptions in the metabolism of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and vitamins. Cardiovascular symptoms mainly include hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy, heart failure, and uremic cardiomyopathy. Gastrointestinal symptoms can manifest as loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting. Hematological manifestations may include renal anemia and a tendency to bleed.