Kidney stones

Exploring Kidneys Problems Causes And Solutions. The formation of little pebbles in the kidney is known as kidney stones.

These are hard, crystalline, mineral materials that stick together within the kidney or urinary tract.

They can be small as grains of sand or as large as golf balls.

Causes

Increased calcium level in the blood may cause kidney stones.

Or high levels of oxalate in the blood can cause kidney stones as well.

And increased levels of both cause kidney stones, which is the case of 70% of kidney stones patients.

Increased levels of uric acid also causes this condition, which is the case of 10% of kidney stones patients.

Continuous state of dehydration also increases the chances of kidney stone formation.

Treatment

1. Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy: an instrument called lithotripter is used to generate shock waves from outside the patient’s body, focused on the part where the stones are present. Resulting in the breakage of stones into small pieces that excretes out of the body via urine. This is performed on the patients who have smaller kidney stones.

2. Percutaneous NephroLithotripsy: In case of larger stones, this method is preferred in which a tube is inserted from the patient’s back into the kidney, creating a tract. A scope runs the tract that visualizes the stones on the screen. An ultrasound equipment is then inserted in the patient’s body to break up the stones. While watching the stones through the scope, Stones are grasped through the equipment and are then pulled out of the patient’s body.

Kidney Failure

The decline in filtration process of the kidney is termed as kidney failure.

There are two types of kidney failures.

1. Chronic renal failure: this is caused by a bacterial infection of the pelvis or the inflammation of glomerulus, or the damage due to high blood pressure. This failure is a slow gradual deterioration that occurs over the years and is irreversible.
2. Acute renal failure: This may be caused by hemorrhage due to trauma, vomiting, diarrhea, excess excretion of urine, or obstruction of ureter.

Patients are usually subjected to Dialysis, which is an artificial method of filtering blood as the patient of kidney failure is unable to do so.

Dialysis- Mechanism

Dialysis is the process of performing blood filtration by artificial means.

Although it is not as efficient and effective as the natural process performed by the kidneys.

There are two types of dialysis.

1. Hemodialysis: This process uses an external filter called dialyzer that removes wastes and water by circulating blood outside. This consists of tubes of semipermeable membrane. A catheter is inserted in the arm that routes the blood externally through a machine that removes wastes. The cleansed blood then re-enters the body through the second catheter. A dialysis fluid, called “dialysate” moves in the machine through membranous tubes that collect all the substances like electrolytes and waste by-products. 

2. Peritoneal dialysis: This method involves the use of natural membranes in the body. Two catheters are surgically inserted in the abdominal cavity that serves as the entrance through which the dialysis fluid, dialysate enters and leaves. During circulation, when blood passes through the blood capillaries, thy dialysate attracts the molecules like electrolytes and waste by-product.

Kidney Transplant

Exploring Kidneys Problems Causes And Solutions. In case of chronic kidney failure, a fully functioning kidney is placed into the affected patient’s body.

But there are certain rules to be followed and there is no chance of a single mistake.

For example, ABO blood compatibility is essential between donor and recipient. 

It is usual to select a donor’s kidney on the basis of Human Leukocytes Antigen.

But the problem with kidney transplant is rejection of the kidney.

The recipient must ingest a high dose of steroids so the body does not reject the transplanted kidney.

At any point, if the recipient stops ingesting this doe, the kidney might get rejected by the body, even after fifteen years.