The KidneySteps Book
Category Archives: Dialysis
KidneySteps Newsletter, Vol. 3, Issue 5 – Vitamin D and CKD
This month’s KidneySteps Newsletter went out yesterday to those of you who have signed up to receive it automatically each month. You may sign up on the right, if you have not. This issue of the Newsletter focuses on the … Continue reading
Dialysis Itchiness
Dialysis has been around for 50 years. Yet, in all this time, doctors still don’t know for sure what causes the excessive skin itchiness or dryness suffered by many dialysis patients. Common theories, such as elevated phosphorus or parathyroid hormone, … Continue reading
EPO Or Iron For Anemia?
Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) often suffer from anemia, an insufficiency of red blood cells. Anemia results when failing kidneys do not make enough of the hormone erythropoietin (EPO). EPO stimulates bone marrow to produce red blood cells needed … Continue reading
KidneySteps Newsletter, Vol. 3 (2013), Issue 4 – Heart And CKD
This month’s issue of the KidneySteps Newsletter is now available. Those of us with kidney disease also run a substantially high risk for developing heart and vessel disease. Kidney and cardiovascular disease are intertwined, with one increasing the odds of … Continue reading
Amy’s Story – PKD And Dialysis
At age 21, I was diagnosed with PKD (polycystic kidney disease, an inherited disease). I now have five children, and with each pregnancy, I had complications, including kidney stones and hypertension. Fast forward to age 43, when my kidney function … Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Dialysis, ESRD, Kidney Disease, PKD, Real Stories/Real People
Tagged home dialysis, PKD
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Lowering Dialysis Death Rate
Patients with kidney failure often rely on life-saving dialysis for survival. Unfortunately, first-year mortality rate for individuals starting dialysis in the U.S. is over 25%, according to the U.S. Renal Data Service. Only half of dialysis patients survive beyond 3 … Continue reading
KidneySteps Newsletter, Vol. 3, Issue 3 – Artificial Kidneys
This month’s KidneySteps Newsletter automatically sent to all of you who signed up (on the right) to receive each month’s issue. The current issue discusses promising developments underway to replace damaged kidneys. The wearable dialysis machine should undergo human trials … Continue reading
Posted in 3 Functions, Blog, Dialysis, ESRD, Kidney Functions, Kidney Transplant, Kidneys, Newsletter, Waiting List
Tagged artificial kidney
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Risk Factors For CKD Progression
Those of us dealing with chronic kidney disease (CKD) know it’s no walk in the park. CKD causes numerous internal complications, substantially raises our risk for cardiovascular-caused death, and often progresses despite control efforts. Science has established with certainty that … Continue reading
In Transplants, Size Matters
Obese individuals (over 35% of people) are often rejected as kidney transplant recipients largely because of their increased risk for surgical complications and adverse outcomes compared to normal-weight individuals. Transplant centers typically use body mass index (BMI) to determine whether … Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Dialysis, Exercising for Kidneys, Kidney Transplant, Obesity, Survival Rates, Waiting List
Tagged obesity and transplant
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Brian’s Story – Kidney Disease From Birth
My son Brian was born with kidney failure due to a birth defect called posterior urethral valves. He was expected to be stillborn or to die shortly after birth. Thankfully, he only needed a vent for a few hours and … Continue reading
Fabry Disease
Fabry disease is an inherited disorder that causes kidney disease, as well as heart and gastrointestinal problems, and can progress to end-stage kidney disease if not controlled early. A primary problem, though, is that many doctors don’t recognize the … Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Dialysis, Food and Kidney Function, Kidney Disease, Nephrologist, Other Causes
Tagged Fabry disease
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CKD Linked To Cancer
An estimated 26 million U.S. adults have chronic kidney disease (CKD). New evidence indicates CKD places patients at a greater risk of cancer as compared to the general population. CKD patients who reach end-stage renal disease (ESRD) face not only … Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Dialysis, ESRD, Kidney Cancer, Kidney Transplant, PKD
Tagged CKD and cancer, kidney disease and cancer, RCC, renal cell carcinoma
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