Chronic Renal Failure Causes

Chronic renal failure causes include a wide range of diseases, conditions and disorders. There are also a number of risk factors related to chronic renal failure causes. Before describing the risks and causes of chronic renal failure, let's take a moment to describe exactly what this very serious kidney problem is.

Chronic renal failure is a term used by medical professionals to describe gradual kidney malfunction. The words chronic renal failure mean the same thing as chronic kidney failure ("renal" is a medical term used in relation to the kidneys).

One of the major functions of the kidneys is filtering wastes, toxins and excess fluids from your blood. The are combined to form urine, which is then excreted. When you have chronic renal failure, this process breaks down for reasons described below. Wastes, toxins and excess fluids begin to accumulate in the body. This makes it even more difficult for the kidneys to function properly and without intervention, kidney failure eventually results.

Chronic renal failure can take years to develop. Chronic kidney disease symptoms rarely occur in the early stages of the condition. Chronic kidney failure is often not even diagnosed until there's been significant kidney damage and the kidneys are functioning at only a fraction of their normal efficiency.

Chronic renal failure causes include the following diseases and conditions.

• Kidney stones.
• Kidney cancer.
• Polycystic kidney disease.
• Pyelonephritis and glomerulonephritis, which are types of kidney infections.
• Renal artery stenosis, in which there has been some form of damage to the artery that transports blood to your kidneys.
• Bladder cancer.
• Both Type I and Type II diabetes.
• Certain prostate problems, especially enlarged prostate.
• High blood pressure, also known as hypertension.
• Lupus, a systemic autoimmune disorder in which your immune system attacks your own body tissues.
• Scleroderma, another type of autoimmune disease that affects the blood vessels and connective tissue.
• Vasculitis, a visible rash caused by swelling of blood vessels under the skin.
• Vesicoureteral reflux, which is a condition that causes urine to back up into your kidneys.

In addition to these chronic renal failure causes, there are also a number of risk factors associated with the condition. You are more likely to have kidney disease than those who don't if

• you have a family history of kidney problems
• you a member of the African-American, American Indian or Asian-American races
• you have reached age 65
• you have heart disease
• your cholesterol is high
• you are obese
• you are a smoker

Chronic kidney failure causes a wide range of problems in many different parts of your body. Some of the most typical include:

• an accumulation of fluid, causing swelling in your arms and legs
• pulmonary edema, or high blood pressure from fluid in your lungs
• hyperkalemia, which is a sudden rise in potassium levels in your blood, jeopardizing your heart's ability to function
• a weakened immune system, making it easier to get an infection
• anemia
• heart disease
• nerve damage, which triggers difficulty concentrating, personality changes and may even result in seizures
• pericarditis, an inflammation of the sac-like membrane that envelops your heart
• reduced libido or impotence
• weakened bones 

When untreated, chronic renal failure causes irreversible damage to your kidneys. There are only two options for survival at this stage: a kidney transplant, or kidney dialysis.

If you have any of the risk factors for chronic renal failure, it's important for you to talk to your doctor before symptoms appear. Once again, by the time you experience symptoms, a significant, possibly irreversible, amount of damage may have occurred to your kidneys. Your doctor can give you one or several kidney tests that can tell you if you're in any danger.

Learn more about the dangers of kidney disease by clicking on the book cover below or

The Kidney Disease Solution