Kidney diseases often detected in last stage: Dr Guliver
Source: Chronicle News Service / Sonia Sorensangbam

Imphal, December 01 2024: The kidney is an organ which works silently till its mils completely.

As such, around 50 per cent of patients with kidney ailments are often diagnosed in late stage, necessitating dialysis.

Thus, people who think that their kidneys are still working fine should have them screened, advised Shija Hospitals and Research Institute consultant nephrologist Dr Gulliver Potsangbam.

In an exclusive interview with The People's Chronicle with regard to the status of kidney diseases in the state, Dr Gulliver said that kidney diseases are often diagnosed late, with around 50 per cent detected at the dialysis stage.

However, this organ works silently even when it is about to completely fail, continuing to help the body.

Thus, there is a need for people to have the kidney screened at the slightest suspicion of infection.

The signs of kidney disease will be there if any of their families diagnosed with diabetes and BP undergo urine and blood tests.

Once this is known, it would be easy to take up preventive measures to lower the impact.

If the treatment is delayed, it would be very expensive, he said, while emphasising on the importance of detecting chronic diseases in the early stages.

Explaining what foods could be consumed to maintain healthy kidneys, Dr Gulliver suggested taking nutritious vegetables and lowering meat consumption, in addition to exercising regularly for 30 minutes daily, controlling BP levels if one has hypertension, increasing fluid intake, and abstaining from painkillers without prescription.

One should also avoid smoking and alcohol to lower the risks on the kidneys, he elaborated.

The consultant explained that kidney comes as a pair of organs, whose basic function is to filter toxic elements from the body, intoxicants from the blood.

Any damage to the kidney is differentiated into acute injury and chronic kidney disease.

Acute kidney injury is when a normal functioning kidney becomes suddenly damaged due to infection, excessive consumption of intoxicants or trauma.

Chronic kidney disease is a long term condition, where one or both kidneys are damaged.

While there is high probability of recovery in acute kidney injury, the probability of recovery for chronic kidney disease is quite low, he maintained.

Observing the rising number of chronic kidney disease cases, Dr Gulliver continued that diabetes is one the major diseases, which is rising alarmingly all over the world and in India.

This is caused by lifestyle changes including changes in food consumption, lack of physical activity, increased consumption of artificial and preserved foods, and processed foods, he added.

He said that kidney disease is now becoming increasing common, with 1-15 per cent of the world's population suffering from chronic kidney disease while 13 per cent of the Indian population is suffering from the same, as quoted in literature.

For Manipur, there is no separate or official data, while the Indian registry data is also lacking in this regard, he conveyed.

Dr Gulliver then informed that most of the patients visiting the Medicine OPD or Special OPD are diabetic, signifying that around 15 per cent of the state's population may be suffering from kidney diseases.

While any damage to the kidneys is known when screening for diabetes, there are cases where the diabetes remains unknown.

If the diabetes remains undiagnosed for 10-15 years, it severely damages the kidneys.

Once the kidneys fail, it would entail transplantation.

In the Indian context, kidney transplants are the most com mon living donor transplant.

The living donors are many and an individual can continue to live on normally with a single kidney, he added.

While the damage to one of the kidneys is usually not a problem, it is also not detected most of the time without a test as the other good kidney will continue to function properly.

If an individual is diagnosed with diabetes and blood pressure, there is a high chance of both kidneys getting damaged.

Meanwhile, there is a chance of reoccurrence of kidney stones in the kidney the stones were first found in.

Apart from this, one of the kidneys are removed when tumours are founds.

But, one can continue to live on a long life on a single kidney, Dr Gulliver said.

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