Most people may not have any severe symptoms until their kidney disease is advanced:
With Chronic Kidney Disease, you may experience the following:
High blood pressure
Feel more tired and have less energy
Have trouble concentrating
Have a poor appetite
Have trouble sleeping
Have muscle cramping at night
Have swollen feet and ankles
Have puffiness around your eyes, especially in the morning
Have dry, itchy skin
Need to urinate more often, especially at night
Poor appetite
Weight loss
Weakness
Trouble sleeping
Heart arrhythmias
Decreased muscle function
In the beginning, kidney failure may not produce any symptoms. Unrecognized or untreated, life-threatening circumstances can develop, however.
As kidney function decreases, symptoms related to the inability to regulate water and electrolyte balances, to clear waste products from the body, and to promote red blood cell production will appear. These symptoms will include weakness, shortness of breath and generalized swelling. Generalized weakness also can be due to anemia because lower levels of erythropoietin do not adequately stimulate the bone marrow.
As waste products build in the blood, loss of appetite, lethargy, and fatigue become apparent. This will progress to the point where mental function will decrease and coma may occur.
When the kidneys cannot address the rising acid load in the body, breathing will become more rapid
Blood pressure also may rise because of the excess fluid, and this fluid can be deposited in the lungs, causing congestive heart failure.
Metabolic acidosis, or increased acidity of the body due to the inability to manufacture bicarbonate, will alter enzyme and oxygen metabolism, causing organ failure.
Inability to excrete potassium and rising potassium levels in the serum is associated with fatal heart rhythm disturbances
Rising urea levels in the blood (uremia) can affect the function of a variety of organs ranging from the brain with alteration of thinking, to inflammation of the heart lining, to decreased muscle function because of low calcium levels.
Posted in: Symptoms of Chronic Kidney Disease?