You might be wondering whether it is possible can damaged kidneys be healed or reversed? Early detection is the key to reversing kidney damage. If caught early enough, the underlying problem can be treated and your kidneys can begin to heal themselves. Treatment for kidney damage will likely involve changes to your lifestyle and possibly medical procedures.
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WHAT CAUSES KIDNEYS DAMAGED AND HEALED?
The three main causes of kidney failure include:
- Direct kidney damage, such as blood clots, certain medications, or infections.
- Blood flow through the kidneys has stopped or decreased.
- Urine cannot leave the kidneys due to some condition.
KIDNEY FAILURE DIAGNOSIS
Confirmation of kidney failure usually involves blood and urine tests. Blood tests will measure creatinine and urea nitrogen, which are waste products in your blood, to show how well your kidneys are working. Urine tests will check for blood, protein, and certain electrolytes that may indicate why your kidneys are failing.
Can damaged kidneys be healed?
If the initial problem that caused the kidney failure is resolved and your kidneys are not severely damaged, they can begin to heal on their own. Otherwise, you can treat kidney failure with dietary changes, medication, and possibly dialysis or a kidney transplant, depending on the stage of the kidney disease and the rate of progression.
There is no cure for chronic kidney disease (CKD), but treatment can help relieve symptoms and prevent them from getting worse.
Your treatment will depend on the stage of your CKD. Your damaged kidneys can be healed by following treatments.
The main treatments are:
- lifestyle changes – to help you stay as healthy as possible
- medicines – to control related problems such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol
- dialysis – treatment to replicate some kidney function, which may be necessary for advanced (stage 5) CKD
Lifestyle changes
The following lifestyle measures are usually recommended for people with kidney disease:
- stop smoking if you smoke
- eat a healthy, balanced diet
- limit your salt intake to less than 6g a day – that’s about 1 teaspoon
- exercise regularly – aim for at least 150 minutes a week
- manage your alcohol intake so that you do not drink more than the recommended limit of 14 units of alcohol per week
- lose weight if you are overweight or obese
- avoid over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen unless recommended by a doctor – these drugs can harm your kidneys if you have kidney disease
Has any medicine healed damaged kidneys?
There is no cure specifically for CKD, but medicine can help control many of the problems that cause the condition and the complications that can happen as a result.
You may need to take medication to treat or prevent various problems caused by CKD. So if you think can damaged kidneys be healed by medicine, then you are wrong about this.
High blood pressure
Good blood pressure control is vital to protect the kidneys.
People with kidney disease should usually try to get their blood pressure below 140/90 mmHg, but if you also have diabetes, you should try to get it below 130/80 mmHg.
There are many types of blood pressure medication, but you can use drugs like angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. Examples include ramipril, enalapril, and lisinopril.
Diabetes or high ACR
If you also have type 2 diabetes or a high albumin to creatinine ratio (ACR), you may be offered a medicine called dapagliflozin, as well as medicines for high blood pressure. Dapagliflozin helps lower blood sugar and may reduce kidney damage.
Can Damaged kidneys healed by High cholesterol?
People with CKD have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, including heart attack and stroke.
This is because some of the causes of kidney disease are the same as those of cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
Medicines like statins prescribe to reduce your risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Examples include atorvastatin and simvastatin.
Water retention in kidney disease
If you suffer from kidney disease, you may experience swelling in your ankles, feet and hands.
This is because your kidneys are not as efficient at removing fluid from the blood, causing it to build up in the body’s tissues (edema).
You should reduce your daily salt and fluid intake, including liquids in meals such as soups and yogurts, to reduce swelling.
Bone problems
Damaged kidneys build phosphate in your body because your kidneys can’t get rid of it and it will not get healed.
Phosphate, along with calcium, is important for maintaining healthy bones. But if your phosphate levels get too high, it can upset your body’s calcium balance and lead to thinning bones.
You may be advised to limit the amount of food you eat that is high in phosphates, such as red meat, dairy products, eggs and fish.
Improving muscle strength
If you have a bad flare and are unable to exercise, you get electrical stimulation to strengthen your muscles.
This is where electrodes are placed on the skin and small electrical impulses are sent to the relaxed muscles, usually in the arms or legs.
Dialysis
If both of your kidneys are damaged. it can only treat with dialysis, but can’t be healed thoroughly. In a small proportion of people with CKD, their kidneys eventually stop working.
This usually happens gradually, so there should be time to plan the next phase of your treatment.
One option when CKD reaches this stage is dialysis. It is a method of removing waste substances and excess fluid from the blood.
There are 2 main types of dialysis:
- hemodialysis – this involves taking the blood to an external machine where it is filtered before being returned to the body
- peritoneal dialysis – this involves pumping dialysis fluid into the space inside your abdomen to pull waste products from your blood as it passes through the vessels lining the inside of your abdomen
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