Chronic kidney disease on the increase

Dr. Susan Alex, who specializes in kidney disease, examines Jessie Craig, a patient.

Most of us know that poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle lead to many health problems – from heart disease and high blood pressure to diabetes. But lurking behind those diseases is yet another problem that we often don’t consider – chronic kidney disease. In fact, “diabetes and hypertension are the major causes of chronic kidney disease,” says Dr. Susan Alex, a board-certified nephrologist who specializes in the treatment of kidney disease. She has practiced at the Madison Kidney Clinic for eight years.

Poor lifestyle choices are contributing to the increase in kidney disease; 20 million Americans (one in every nine people) have the disease and 400,000 of them are on dialysis because their kidneys no longer function adequately. By 2010, an estimated 651,000 people will be on dialysis.

The kidneys play an big role in maintaining our health by ridding the body of unwanted wastes, balancing the body’s fluids and helping to regulate blood pressure and production of red blood cells.
Chronic kidney disease can lead to kidney failure, which means you must have dialysis or a kidney transplant to stay alive.

The increase in kidney disease alarms physicians like Dr. Alex. That’s why she strongly encourages being tested for kidney disease, particularly if you are at risk.

“We can diagnose kidney disease much earlier than before,” she says. And with earlier diagnosis comes the greater likelihood of being able to control the disease, she adds. “Once kidney disease starts, the aim is to delay its progress. We can’t cure someone of kidney disease, but we can try to slow down its progression. Treatment goals include preventing disease progression and complications. Special emphasis is placed on prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease in patients with chronic kidney disease.”

Most of the time, kidney disease has no symptoms, she says. It is most often detected by some basic tests: measuring blood pressure, a urine test that checks for excessive protein, and a test for blood creatinine and calculating how much function your kidneys have. The good news is that most physicians will routinely check for kidney disease when a patient is at risk because of high blood pressure, diabetes, or a family history of the disease.

Many times, kidney disease can be treated successfully by adopting healthy lifestyle habits, including a good diet.

Those who lose their kidney function will need dialysis or a transplant. Hemodialysis can be done at a clinic three times a week; some patients prefer peritonea dialysis, which is done at home with a catheter inside the abdominal cavity.

If a transplant patient does not have a relative who would be a good kidney donor, the patient often needs to wait up to three years for another donor kidney to become available, Dr. Alex says.

“Early detection of kidney disease and the control of risk factors have helped a lot in treating the disease,” she says.

Even better, though, is to practice a healthy lifestyle so that you are not at risk for kidney disease. Dr. Alex recommends…
• Eating a good diet that is low in sodium, cholesterol, and red and processed meats and one that is high in vegetables, fruit and complex carbohydrates, such as whole wheat and bran.
• Exercising regularly.
• Avoiding medicines that can affect kidneys.
• Controlling other risks, such as high blood sugar and high blood pressure.

“A healthy diet and exercise will go a long way in preventing kidney disease, high blood pressure and many other problems,” Dr. Alex says. “The diet I’m talking about is good for me, for you, and our children.”