The hall mark of kidney diseases is proteinuria , i.e. presence of protein in urine . While proteinuria is sure sign of kidney ailment , its absence does not rule out kidney disease . Proteinuria may or may not be associated with swelling of feet or puffiness of face . Often the puffiness is noticed during morning hours . Swelling of feet is common in the evening hours as the person walks around . In females , during pregnancy , swelling of feet is not uncommon . But even then , a urine routine test for protein is a must in all pregnancies . If during pregnancy proteinuria is detected then the lady must consult a doctor at the earliest as it may herald the onset of a serious illness called toxemia .
The next warning signal of kidney disease is high blood pressure . Blood pressure at any age must not be taken lightly and one needs to undergo few simple tests to rule out kidney ailments . Any younger individual below 35 years of age with high blood pressure has kidney disease unless proved otherwise .
Pale looking individual who feels easily exhausted , has a poor appetite and who tends to have nausea or vomiting kidneys could be culprit . Kidneys produce a hormone called erythropoietin which stimulates bone marrow to synthesize hemoglobin . So anemia indicates a serious kidney damage .
Red colored or cola colored urine is surely a sign of something grossly wrong with urinary system . It needs to be sorted out by means of sonography or specialized form of x- rays . An elderly gentleman having painless red urine may indicate cancer in urine tract while a young girl with cola colored urine indicates inflamed kidneys which needs medical attention . If red urine is associated with pain in loins or back then kidney stones could be responsible for this misery .
Frequent urination especially at night may indicate diabetes or kidney disease . Straining while passing urine in an elderly male points towards enlargement of prostate gland . Urinary burning with foul odor with or without fever is indicative of urine infection . Urine infection in pregnant lady warrants immediate attention as it affects growth of baby . While urine infection in girls may occur once in a while , but infection in a young boy indicates a serious illness called reflux which damages kidneys irreversibly if left untreated .
Often there may not be any symptom but person may still harbor kidney disease . Diabetic individuals are prone for kidney disease in more than one way . They have high chances of urine infection due to presence of sugar in urine . Diabetes can cause damage to the filtering unit of kidneys resulting in protein leakage in urine which if not treated early can result in kidney failure . Deteriorating vision goes hand in hand with kidney damage . So all diabetics should have their eyes checked for retinal damage and urine checked for protein .
But why are we stressing so much on early detection of kidney disease ? It is because an individual has to pay a heavy price if disease progresses . The treatment of kidney failure is costly . One has to undergo dialysis or kidney transplantation if kidneys fail . Both these options are costly and do affect quality of life . A stitch in time saves nine ! Prevention of kidney disease by control of diabetes , hypertension , stone disease , avoidance of smoking and early detection of presence of kidney disease by inexpensive means like simple urine test can save many lives .
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