Having kidney disease means your kidney’s capacity to function at an optimum level declines over the years. Although there are frequently no symptoms at first, fluid retention can result in edema and elevated blood pressure, and kidney failure may eventually result from it. Your kidneys get damaged and become unable to filter blood as effectively as necessary if you have kidney disease!

In India, 13- 15% of individuals have kidney disease and suffer from its several detrimental health effects. Diabetes, hypertension, and a family history of renal failure are the primary risk factors for kidney disease, and early detection of kidney disease is absolutely important to stop the progression of this illness. This blog will discuss how to detect and prevent kidney disease early.

What is Kidney Disease?

A progressive decrease in kidney function is the main feature of kidney disease, commonly known as chronic kidney failure. Kidneys filter waste products and extra fluid from your blood by producing urine, but if you have advanced renal disease your body may accumulate hazardous amounts of fluid and waste products. You may have minimal symptoms in the early stages of kidney disease, and as a result, you may not become aware that you have this disease until you go through kidney health screenings! 

The goal of treating kidney disease is to decrease the course of kidney damage, often by addressing the underlying cause, however, even addressing the root problem may not always stop kidney disease from getting worse. End-stage kidney failure, which is lethal in the absence of mechanical filtration (dialysis) or a kidney transplant, can develop from chronic kidney disease. 

What Are the Symptoms of Kidney Disease? 

If kidney damage occurs gradually, the signs and symptoms appear slowly over time, and prominent symptoms may not be detected at the early stage without going through tests. If you are wondering how to detect kidney disease early, learn the most common symptoms of kidney disease mentioned below. 

• Weakness and exhaustion

• Throwing up

• Feeling queasy

• Appetite loss

• More/less urination than normal 

• Issues with sleep

• Cramping in the muscles

• Uncontrollable high blood pressure or hypertension

• Swelling in the ankles and feet

• Itchy and dry skin

• Breathing difficulties if there is an accumulation of fluid in the lungs

• Chest discomfort if fluid accumulates around the heart's lining  

Why Is Early Detection of Kidney Disease Important?

The importance of early kidney disease detection cannot be overstated because if your kidney disease reaches the final stage, the only treatment options are dialysis and kidney transplant, and those are complicated processes.

Progression of kidney disease to complete renal failure can be avoided with early identification, so you must collaborate with your physician if you have diabetes, hypertension, and other high-risk factors to get checked for kidney disease. 

The best course of action is to work with your physician to understand your risk and attend all of your scheduled checkups, as kidney disease frequently doesn't show signs in its early stages. 

Types of Kidney Health Screening for Early Detection  

Your healthcare practitioner will first ask about any current medicines you are taking, perform a physical examination, review your medical history, and inquire about any symptoms you may have experienced; after that, to assess kidney function, your doctor will prescribe blood and urine tests. 

• GFR Blood test 

The blood tests will specifically measure your glomerular filtration rate (GFR), indicating the rate at which your kidneys filter blood or how effectively they do so. Your GFR determines the stage of your kidney illness. 

A GFR of 60 or above is considered normal, but you may have renal disease if your GFR is below 60. Remember, kidney failure is defined as a GFR of 15, and below this threshold, the majority require dialysis or a kidney transplant.

Discuss your treatment options with your healthcare practitioner if that is the case for you because your GFR cannot be increased, but it may be prevented from falling.

• Creatinine test

Your blood creatinine level indicates your kidneys' ability to eliminate waste products, a waste product of muscle metabolism. Creatinine is typically not present in urine, but if your blood creatinine level is high, it indicates that your kidneys aren't working properly enough to eliminate it from your urine. 

• Urine Test for Albumin

Your blood contains a protein called albumin, and your healthcare practitioner may perform an albumin test on your urine if you are at risk for renal disease. Albumin cannot enter the urine from a healthy kidney, but some amount of albumin can enter the urine through a damaged kidney.  

• Urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR)

Your urine sample's albumin and creatinine levels are measured and compared in UACR, which doctors use to calculate the amount of albumin that would enter your urine over a day. 

Urine albumin levels of 30 mg/g or less are considered normal, and levels above 30 mg/g might indicate renal dysfunction. 

To confirm the results, your doctor could ask you to do the urine test one or two more times to see if there is albumin in it, and if the results are the same, your doctor can determine the best course of therapy for kidney disease by evaluating the amount of albumin in your urine.  

Additional testing may involve imaging tests, such as computed tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultrasound, to check for issues with the size and shape of your kidneys. Your doctor may also prescribe a kidney biopsy to assess the extent of kidney damage or screen for a particular kind of kidney disease.

What are the Common Causes of Kidney Disease?

The two most frequent causes of kidney disease are diabetes and high blood pressure, or hypertension. However, kidney disease can also result from the following other factors and situations that impair kidney function:

Glomerulonephritis	In this condition, the glomeruli, the kidneys' internal filtering units, are harmed.
Polycystic kidney disease	This is a hereditary condition that impairs kidney function by causing many fluid-filled cysts to form in the kidneys
Membranous nephropathy	This condition occurs when the immune system of your body targets the kidney's waste-filtering membranes
Obstructions of the urinary tract	Kidney stones that obstruct the urinary tract can also cause kidney disease.
Pyelonephritis	Pyelonephritis or recurrent kidney infection is a diabetes-related injury or malfunction of one or more nerves.

Final Remarks  

Kidney disease can range from a moderate illness with few or no symptoms to a very dangerous condition known as kidney failure, in which the kidneys stop functioning altogether. With medication and routine checkups, the majority of early-stage kidney disease patients can manage their illness, but remember, severe cases of kidney disease can also cause renal failure. 

That is why it is best to go through yearly routine health checkups so your doctor can find out early if your kidneys are functioning right! If you or someone in your family is experiencing any symptoms related to kidney issues, then visit a super-specialty hospital as soon as possible! 

FAQs

1. What are the early signs of kidney disease?

Early signs include fatigue, swelling in the hands or feet, frequent urination (especially at night), and blood or foam in the urine.

2. Can kidney disease be detected without symptoms?

Yes, routine tests like blood tests (to check creatinine and GFR) and urine tests can detect kidney disease even if symptoms are not present.

3. Who is at higher risk for kidney disease?

Individuals with diabetes, high blood pressure, a family history of kidney problems, or those over 60 are at greater risk.

4. How often should I get tested for kidney disease?

If you’re at risk, it’s recommended to have kidney function tests annually or as advised by your doctor.

5. What tests are used to detect kidney disease?

Common tests include blood tests (e.g., serum creatinine and GFR), urine analysis, and imaging tests like ultrasounds.

Citations

Causes of chronic kidney disease. (2024, December 13). National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/kidney-disease/chronic-kidney-disease-ckd/causes

Explaining your kidney test Results: A tool for clinical use - NIDDK. (n.d.). National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/professionals/advanced-search/explain-kidney-test-results

Khan, Y. H., Sarriff, A., Adnan, A. S., Khan, A. H., & Mallhi, T. H. (2016). Chronic kidney disease, fluid overload and diuretics: a complicated triangle. PLoS ONE, 11(7), e0159335. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0159335

Ren, F., Li, M., Xu, H., Qin, X., & Teng, Y. (2021). Urine albumin‐to‐creatinine ratio within the normal range and risk of hypertension in the general population: A meta‐analysis. Journal of Clinical Hypertension, 23(7), 1284–1290. https://doi.org/10.1111/jch.14263

Shahbaz, H., Rout, P., & Gupta, M. (2024, July 27). Creatinine clearance. StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK544228/

Vaidya, S. R., & Aeddula, N. R. (2024, July 31). Chronic kidney disease. StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK535404/

Varma, P. P. (2015, June 1). Prevalence of chronic kidney disease in India - Where are we heading? https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4446915/