Ways To Treat Uremia
Also known as uremic syndrome, uremia is a condition where the kidneys are no longer working correctly. As such, they allow the extra fluid and waste that would normally be filtered out to remain in your blood. The longer it stays with you, the more you may experience nausea, itchiness, loss of appetite, fatigue, weight loss, trouble concentrating, and pain in your legs and feet. Given enough time, uremia can cause serious damage to your heart and brain, which is why it is so critical it be treated quickly and effectively. There are multiple options for treating uremia. Learn about the most common ones now.
Hemodialysis
Hemodialysis is a process in which the blood is filtered with the help of a machine. The machine helps your body get rid of the waste, salt, and fluid in your blood when your kidneys can no longer perform this action on their own. This process requires the patient to adhere to a strict treatment schedule, and it may require them to take additional medication. Your doctor may even advise changes to your diet. Some individuals may need to get the procedure done at a care center three times a week for several hours at a time. However, you may be able to perform the procedure at home. These sessions are more frequent but shorter—the average session lasts for about two to three hours, and takes place six to seven times a week. The procedure may cause nausea and cramps as the fluid is pulled from the body, but you can speak to your doctor about lessening the side effects by adjusting the speed of the process or through medication.
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Peritoneal Dialysis
Peritoneal dialysis is a process in which waste products are removed from your blood, much like hemodialysis. Unlike hemodialysis, however, it does this by inserting a cleansing fluid into the abdomen. There, the fluid can filter waste from the blood. After it has completed this, the fluid flows out of the abdomen and is discarded. Peritoneal dialysis treatments are easier because they can be completed from home, at work, or even while you are traveling. This makes it an option for some but not all, as it is necessary for you to have the skill to do it yourself or the ability to rely on a caregiver. Other benefits of this treatment include greater flexibility in your dietary guidelines as well as more stable blood chemistry—due to the continuous nature of the treatment—and body hydration.
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Kidney Transplant
A kidney transplant is a procedure in which the kidney is removed and replaced with a healthy one from either a living or deceased donor. This is a surgery performed when the kidney can no longer function properly, and the patient in question does not want to spend their entire lives on dialysis. However, some factors may preclude someone from being eligible for a transplant, including age, heart disease, cancer, and dementia. That said, a kidney transplant is still the preferred treatment for many as only one kidney is needed to replace two failing ones, which means live donors are an option. There is typically a recovery time of a few days to a week required in the hospital with additional recovery at home for up to eight weeks after the transplant.
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Regenerative Medicine
Regenerative medicine is a still burgeoning field of medicine that deals with the body's ability to heal itself. This branch of medicine explores the power of stem cells and platelet-rich plasma cells to assist the healing process by encouraging the regeneration of healthy cells. The healthy cells take the place of the damaged cells and speed up the process of returning the body to its normal state. There is still much research to be done in this field, but the results so far are promising. Patients can receive treatments on a regular basis, much in the same way they would receive dialysis, with the eventual hope their condition will improve.
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Follow Up Care
Many things outside of a doctor's office are a part of follow up care to help patients deal with uremia. For instance, many doctors will advise patients to avoid eating certain foods, as this can exacerbate their condition. Foods like this include anything high in sodium, phosphorus, and potassium. Patients should also try to eat healthy diets outside of these restrictions and engage in exercise if possible. Patients who are receiving any kind of dialysis will likely be advised to adhere to a strict treatment regimen to maintain the effectiveness of the procedure. Those patients who have to receive a kidney transplant will likely be given medication to stop the body from rejecting the donor's kidney.