Your kidney and microalbumin count
I did not realize that I had silent readers about diabetes and when I was gone for over a week, some requested that I should continue. Well, I never intended to stop, I just decided to slow down. Thanks for finding this relevant though and thanks for your e-mails. One reader was asking if I was extremely overweight. I am not. In fact, if you look at me, I am just about normal, like other people, a little bit of flab here and there and that’s about it.
Back to our topic. Diabetic Nephropathy is the name given when our kidneys lose their ability to filter properly.
One of the tests I had to do after three months was Microalbumin test. For people suffering from diabetes, this is important. Kidney disease is one of the top complications that diabetes brings about. Albumin is a protein produced by the liver and is found in the blood in high concentrations. This protein is important to our body. It is responsible in repairing and maintaining our cells. When our kidney starts to lose its ability to filter proteins, they leak through in our urine. Albumin is one of all proteins that get detected when we have kidney damage. If you are a patient who has high amount of albumin in your urine, you are bound to have kidney failure.
Kidney symptoms may not be apparent until the kidneys are severely damaged by uncontrolled glucose. Therefore it is important that you maintain normal blood sugar as often as possible to delay the onset of this complication.
I had to undergo a 24-hour urine collection. Why 24 hours? Sometimes, protein-escapes are not consistent. In four hours, you may be releasing a considerable amount and the next 24 hours, you might not, so the most accurate test would be the 24-hour urine collection. It is too cumbersome because you have to collect your urine wherever you are. It was one of the most embarrassing things I had to do. I had to put my container in our office fridge for a day. I tried not to conceal it but it was foreign looking, people had to ask. If I was a disease free person, I could have objected. Luckily, this situation was something my officemates understood.
High levels of microalbumin indicates that a kidney disease is present in a very severe form. Moderately increased microalbumin is an indication that one may be in the early phase of developing a kidney disease and Normal levels are an indication that kidney function is normal.
I had a normal result. This test should be done every year if you are a type 2 diabetic.
How do you feel when you are starting to have kidney failure? Lose of weight and tiredness all the time. Please take note that having high level of microalbumin might be caused by other complications, not necessarily diabetes. It might be brought about by Cardio Vascular Disease.
Back to our topic. Diabetic Nephropathy is the name given when our kidneys lose their ability to filter properly.
One of the tests I had to do after three months was Microalbumin test. For people suffering from diabetes, this is important. Kidney disease is one of the top complications that diabetes brings about. Albumin is a protein produced by the liver and is found in the blood in high concentrations. This protein is important to our body. It is responsible in repairing and maintaining our cells. When our kidney starts to lose its ability to filter proteins, they leak through in our urine. Albumin is one of all proteins that get detected when we have kidney damage. If you are a patient who has high amount of albumin in your urine, you are bound to have kidney failure.
Kidney symptoms may not be apparent until the kidneys are severely damaged by uncontrolled glucose. Therefore it is important that you maintain normal blood sugar as often as possible to delay the onset of this complication.
I had to undergo a 24-hour urine collection. Why 24 hours? Sometimes, protein-escapes are not consistent. In four hours, you may be releasing a considerable amount and the next 24 hours, you might not, so the most accurate test would be the 24-hour urine collection. It is too cumbersome because you have to collect your urine wherever you are. It was one of the most embarrassing things I had to do. I had to put my container in our office fridge for a day. I tried not to conceal it but it was foreign looking, people had to ask. If I was a disease free person, I could have objected. Luckily, this situation was something my officemates understood.
High levels of microalbumin indicates that a kidney disease is present in a very severe form. Moderately increased microalbumin is an indication that one may be in the early phase of developing a kidney disease and Normal levels are an indication that kidney function is normal.
I had a normal result. This test should be done every year if you are a type 2 diabetic.
How do you feel when you are starting to have kidney failure? Lose of weight and tiredness all the time. Please take note that having high level of microalbumin might be caused by other complications, not necessarily diabetes. It might be brought about by Cardio Vascular Disease.
posted by ting-aling at 8:04 AM
6 Comments:
Microalbuminemia can be a sign of kidney damage due to a variety of causes, foremost of which is diabetes, among observed cases medically. But like what Ting-Aling said, causes are not limited to diabetes only, it can infectious, immunulogic, or genetic. It always pays to have it checked or suggest it to your doctor in case you feel it has to be done.
Tiredness, lethargy, and yes, feeling sleepy can be due to kidney, liver, or diseases affecting both organ systems. It can also be due to heart, nervous system, or blood problems. The best way to know is to have a consultation with a doctor who can evaluate your symptoms as a whole and relate it to a possible disease syndrome happening in your body.
Bayi, it's okey to disgress. This is what this blog is all about. We share our experiences with the hope that others will pick up something and learn from us. On the other hand I learn too.
The participation of Doc Emer of course just makes it more educational. I might be missing important points or he can always clarify. Doc Emer, that was helpful.
Does losing albumin also results from kidney stones? I remember when I was taken to the hospital for kidney stones, I had a plus 1 and it disappeared after my lithotripsy. In my latest urine test, it yielded "traces" of albumin. A(+/-) sign was indicated. I suspect I am developing kidney stones again as my urine also yielded the presence of pus. Ugh...
Naku Tito Rolly, department na yata ni Doc Emer yan. I will push a button para masagot ka niya. Paging Doc Emer.
Bayi, I don't mind you relating to us what you have undergone. See we are bringing out inquisitive minds? Tell us more about your experience. please?
Tito Rolly, I did a quick research about kidney stones and this led me to learn that Kidney stones are results of mineral build up in our kidney. Sometimes they don't get flushed due to dehydration but there are other more complex reasons too. That leads me all the more to have my daily 8-10 glasses of water a day and lesser salt intake. See, I learned something today.
Ting-Aling, you did a fine job with your research. Drinking 8-10 glasses of water really helps prevent kidney stone formation. There are people prone to kidney stones and are termed "stone-formers." Puede sa kidney. Puede din sa gallbladder. Before I went to China, a lady friend of mine, 36 years old, just had her gall stones removed. She was very puzzled why she had it when she swears she isn't very fond of eating salty or spicy foods. For stone-formers, the problem is far graver ad the story goes beyond just mere avoidance of spicy foods, because they are more like "sentenced" to have stones sometime in the future no matter how much water they take in. Buco juice is also another good alternative to water. There have been studies in UP that it helps dissolve stones which have already formed.
These days, if you have stones, you can have several options to have them removed. Methods will depend on your symptoms and usually how big the stones are. It can be surgical (less seldom), medical (they give you medicines to get rid of the stones) or by ultrasonography (soundwaves blast the stones to smaller particles that go with the urine when you void). As always should you experience any unusual symptom, consult your doctor for the best medical advice.
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