Is uremia serious?

Written by Guan Hai Fang
Urology
Updated on September 07, 2024
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Uremia is very serious. For patients with uremia who wish to be cured, the current method is to undergo kidney transplantation. Kidney transplantation is currently considered the best method for treating uremia. If no suitable kidney source is found, or economic conditions do not allow, or for some other reasons, it is recommended that patients undergo dialysis. Dialysis is also quite expensive, but if economic conditions permit, and physical health and mood among other factors allow, patients with uremia who undergo regular dialysis can generally have their lives extended by several years. It is not uncommon to see reports of lives being extended by more than a decade.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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Is uremia contagious?

Strictly speaking, uremia is not an independent disease and it is not contagious. Uremia refers to the state where numerous causes chronically damage the kidneys over a long period, eventually leading to the destruction of most kidney tissue, resulting in the kidneys' inability to excrete metabolic waste. There are many causes of uremia, including chronic nephritis, diabetes hypertension, systemic lupus erythematosus, urinary system stones, and even prostate hyperplasia, among others, which damage the kidneys and lead to this condition. Generally, these causes are not contagious as they do not involve bacteria, viruses, or fungi. However, if uremia is caused by infectious diseases, such as hepatitis B virus or HIV, these infectious diseases can be contagious, but uremia itself is not contagious.

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Written by Li Liu Sheng
Nephrology
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Causes of Uremia

Uremia is a syndrome caused by the progressive development of various chronic kidney diseases, eventually leading to renal failure in patients, where the kidneys are unable to promptly eliminate excess water, various electrolytes, and toxins from the body. There are many causes of uremia; chronic nephritis, diabetic nephropathy, and hypertensive nephropathy are the most common causes. Other causes include chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis, chronic pyelonephritis, chronic obstructive nephropathy, toxic nephropathy, hereditary nephritis, renal vascular diseases, and lupus nephritis. Once uremia occurs, the preferred treatment is dialysis therapy, which can be either hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. Only after dialysis treatment can the life of a patient with uremia be prolonged.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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How is uremia caused?

Uremia, also known as end-stage renal disease, is actually the late stage of chronic renal failure development, capable of causing long-term chronic damage to the kidneys. There are many reasons for this, and if these causes persist over a long period, continuously harming the kidneys without effective removal or control, it could eventually lead to severe renal failure, ultimately causing uremia. The causes that can chronically harm the kidneys mainly include diabetes, hypertension, chronic nephritis, polycystic kidney, urinary system stones, tumors, and other such conditions.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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How to diagnose uremia

Uremia is the final state of chronic renal failure. This disease cannot be diagnosed through physical examination and medical history inquiry alone. Diagnosis requires testing, combined with the patient's physical examination and medical history, to comprehensively determine the diagnosis. Patients with uremia first need to have a blood test to check kidney function, with blood creatinine levels needing to exceed 707μmol/L. Secondly, they should undergo an ultrasound of the urinary system. Typically, the kidney size in such patients is reduced, which can be detected by the ultrasound. These two diagnostic methods used together can diagnose uremia. Patients also need to be checked for potential complications caused by uremia, such as measuring blood pressure and performing a complete blood count to check for renal anemia, among others.

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Written by Wang Shuai
Urology
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Is hematuria the same as uremia?

Hematuria is not the same as uremia; hematuria is merely a symptom with various causes such as infections of the urinary system, tumors, stones, or decreased coagulation function leading to blood in the urine. After experiencing hematuria, it is necessary to promptly visit a hospital's urology department for routine urine tests, ultrasonography of the urinary system, CT scans, urinary system imaging, or even a cystoscopy to determine the specific cause of the hematuria. Uremia, on the other hand, primarily refers to damage to kidney function, leading to decreased kidney function, which causes symptoms such as reduced urine output and localized edema in the body. If hematuria occurs or uremia is suspected, a detailed examination at the hospital's urology or nephrology department is required promptly.