What causes uremia?

Written by Wang Li Bing
Intensive Care Medicine Department
Updated on September 15, 2024
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Uremia is very common in clinical practice. It is mainly caused by abnormal kidney functions, leading to abnormalities in glomerular filtration, as well as in the reabsorption and secretion functions of the renal tubules, which results in a series of symptoms. Once uremia occurs, it can disrupt the internal environment of the body, cause electrolyte abnormalities, and even lead to life-threatening arrhythmias. Uremia is very dangerous in clinical practice and often requires regular hemodialysis treatment. Therefore, once uremia occurs, medical attention must be sought promptly.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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What should I do about tinnitus caused by uremia?

Tinnitus in uremia requires further consultation at the ENT department of a formal public hospital. Tinnitus is not a typical symptom of uremia and may not necessarily be related to kidney disease or caused by uremia. Some patients may experience tinnitus due to severe anemia, which leads to insufficient blood supply in the skull, or due to persistently high blood pressure caused by uremia, which can also potentially cause tinnitus. However, the probability of these scenarios is generally low, and it is still recommended that patients seek further consultation at an ENT department to clarify potential causes, such as infections or tumors in the inner ear system.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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The precursors of uremia

The so-called uremia refers to the end result of chronic kidney disease causing long-term damage to the kidneys in patients. Patients with uremia often have long-standing conditions, as it takes time to progress from mild kidney failure to uremia. Before the onset of uremia, patients may experience symptoms related to kidney failure, such as swelling of the limbs and face, reduced urine output, proteinuria which leads to foamy urine, and visible blood in the urine due to hematuria. Patients are also prone to developing high blood pressure. These symptoms can be precursors to uremia, although other diseases can also cause similar symptoms.

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Written by Guan Hai Fang
Urology
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Is uremia serious?

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 Guan Hai Fang
Urology
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Is uremia cancer?

Uremia is not cancer. Chronic kidney failure refers to the presence of various kidney diseases that lead to a progressive and irreversible decline in kidney function, culminating in a series of symptoms and metabolic disorders that form a clinical syndrome, commonly known as chronic kidney failure. The end stage of chronic kidney failure is what is often referred to as uremia. Uremia is not a separate disease, but a clinical syndrome common to various late-stage kidney diseases. It is a symptom consisting of a series of clinical manifestations that occur when chronic kidney failure enters its terminal stage. Typically, this includes disturbances in water and electrolyte acid-base metabolism, with metabolic acidosis and water-electrolyte imbalance being the most common.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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Does uremia hurt?

The so-called uremia refers to patients whose kidney function has been lost by more than 90%, and the vast majority of kidney tissue has been destroyed. Although the condition of these patients is very serious, they do not experience pain symptoms. In patients with uremia, the kidney tissue has hardened, and in most of the causes leading to uremia, pain is not induced. Even though the kidneys have severe problems, there are no nerves in the kidneys to sense pain, as there are no sensory nerves, so the kidneys do not feel pain. Causes that can lead to uremia include diabetes, hypertension, chronic nephritis, urinary system stones, tumors, and more. Painful conditions are mainly caused by urinary system stones, while other causes generally do not entail pain.