When a person has problem in natural kidney functioning artificial kidney machine is used. The process of removing impurities from blood is called hemodialysis.
Renal Function of Kidney
Waste products are formed in the body during bodily metabolism. So, natural kidneys are used to remove those wastes. Single kidney has the capability to clear the waste products from blood. Nephrons are the smallest functional units of kidney. Urine is formed in body through nephrons. Formation of urine is done in three process
- Blood plasma filtration.
- Secretion of urea, uric acid and phosphates.
- Reabsorption of water, glucose and chloride.
Each nephron has glomerulus. It performs the filtration process. Blood from arteries enter glomerulus for filtering. It also consists of tubeles, which does active secretion and reabsorption. The components like water, glucose, amino acids, salts, urea, uric acid and creatinine are removed and filtered from the body. At the entrance of the tubele, the process of reabsorption takes place. So here, glucose, amino acid, protein, water and salt are reabsorbed. When a particular chemical in the blood increases, tubeles does not perform complete reabsorption. Therefore, if a person has complete renal failure, he develops uremia. During this stage, broken metabolic products are not excreted. Instead, they are accumulated in the body itself. Thus, the quantity of urea and creatinine levels increase. By this, the acid base balance of the body gets affected leading to the development of acidosis. Due to this acidosis, potassium level in the blood increases and affects the heart. Eventually the patient will die soon.Therefore, to avoid such conditions artificial kidneys are used and process of dialysis is performed.
Causes of Chronic Kidney Disease
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes (both type 1 and 2)
- Inflammation of the filtering units in the kidneys called glomeruli
- Inflammation of the kidney’s tubules and the structures around them
- Enlarged prostrate
- Some types of cancer
- Kidney stones that block the urinary tract for a prolonged period of time
- Kidney infections that recur
How Can Kidney Disease be Prevented?
- Controlling diabetes
- Maintaining a healthy blood pressure
- Taking steps to maintain cardiovascular health
- Not smoking
- Maintaining a healthy diet and exercise plan to avoid obesity
Complications of Kidney Disease
- Cardiovascular issues
- Heart attacks as a cause of death
- Severe itching from the imbalance of minerals
- Amyloidosis, a rare disease that causes your joints to be painful and stiff and retain fluid