The majority of people with kidney damage do not show any symptoms during the first stages of the disease
The Spanish Nephrology Association (SEN, in its Spanish acronym) estimates 10% of the population suffers from some degree of Chronic Kidney Failure (CKF). Kidney failure occurs when the kidneys -which are in charge of getting rid of the impurities in the blood stream- do not function properly. This is a highly-common condition that tends to go unnoticed at the first stages due to the lack of symptoms. Doctor Alberto Marañés, the Head of the Nephrology Unit at the Quirónsalud Marbella Hospital states “when the kidneys don’t function properly, the amount of waste in the blood stream can increase and cause complications such as high blood pressure, anaemia, bone weakening, malnutrition and heart or vascular diseases. These conditions can appear slowly through a long period of time, and many times they may not show any symptoms”.
The “quiet” nature of CFK at the first stages is the reason this disease can go unnoticed for the majority of people. However, it is possible to detect it through a simple blood test. The expert points out that “the best way of diagnosing the disease is to take a blood test to ascertain the Creatinine levels and a urine test to ascertain whether there is blood, white blood cells or albumin in the sample, which helps identify kidney damage at the early stages. It is specially recommended for people with diabetes and/or high blood pressure”.
Precisely, the most frequent causes of Chronic Kidney Failure (CKF) are diabetes mellitus and high blood pressure. Since both diseases are increasingly more frequent in our society, an exponential growth of the disease has been registered with higher incidence in developed countries due to unhealthy lifestyles.
The function of the kidneys is vital for our organism. Additionally to eliminating the excess bodily waste and fluids, our kidneys help regulate blood pressure, bone metabolism, prevent anaemia and keep the balance of chemical substances in the blood stream -such as sodium, potassium, phosphorous and calcium. In the words of Doctor Alberto Marañés, it is fundamental for us to “make sure our kidneys stay healthy”. In order to do so, the specialist proposes a series of habits that are “easy to incorporate into our daily routine without the need for any special efforts” such as “preventing obesity, keeping diabetes and high blood pressure under control, having regular health check-ups, making sure we sleep the required amount of hours, avoiding any kind of excess -especially dietary excess-, taking exercise and drinking approximately two litres of water a day .
Chronic Kidney Failure can eventually lead to the need of dialysis or a kidney transplant. Early detection and treatment prevent or delay such complications, although in any case, knowing that there are solutions at hand provides peace of mind.
Quirónsalud Marbella Hospital has an Haemodialysis Unit, the only one in the Quironsalud group in the Andalusian Region, which is provided with 20 stations and the latest technology in this field. With a total area of 500 square metres, it includes a large treatment ward with 10 dialysis monitors each, all abiding by the European quality standards. This unit is led by a team of highly-renowned Nephrology specialists who are present at all times, as well as nursing staff with vast experience and training in haemodialysis.
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