3 Painless Symptoms of Kidneys not Filtering

People at risk for CKD and people with CKD are encouraged to protect their kidneys. Hence, we are advising about the 3 Painless Symptoms of Kidneys not Filtering. Many people might have the issue without knowing it is there. Your kidney gets weakened as we grow older and cannot clean the blood.

When that time comes the kidneys don’t operate as it should: waste, toxins and extra water build up in the blood eventually in the body and may cause other health difficulties. In certain instances it might include heart disease and high blood pressure etc.

In previous topics, we have discussed our Kidneys: Location, Structure, and Functions. The article gives more detailed insights and an understanding of our renal anatomy.

Other topics like, What is a kidney stone, types of cysts, and the Relation between Renal functioning and Blood pressure enhance better prospects around understanding this topic “The Symptoms of Kidneys not filtering.”

In this article, we have specifically emphasized the non-filtration and other possible problems regarding Kidney failure Causes, Symptoms, etc. This article will be short and more general for non-medical background readers.

The Basic Symptoms of kidneys not filtering

The Fundamental filtering unit of our kidney is consisted of lots of structured filters known as Glomerulus. Each kidney has thousands of glomeruli. The Glomerulus helps our body to get rid of complex unwanted and harmful substances.

Without these glomeruli, our blood will not be available with oxygen-rich and pure in form, even when you smoke or drink at the starting age.

Eventually, an overdose of drugs, alcohol, bad habits of excessive protein, or sugar intake makes you ill, fatty, or other disorders, which indirectly indicates some kidney problems.

Here are other articles where I have explained in detail about kidney issues:

• Kidneys Location, Structure, and Function.
• Why Do My Kidneys Hurt at Night?
• What does the pancreas do in your body?
• How do the kidneys help regulate blood pressure?
• What are the symptoms of cysts in the kidneys?
• 7 Quick Guide To Know what is kidney stone pain like?
• 5 Special Tips for Heart and Kidney Failure Symptoms

Please consider looking at these other articles to understand kidney issues in a broader view. We continue to look at the 3 Painless Symptoms of Kidneys not Filtering.

Kidney Not Filtering Disorders

Each kidney consists of nearly 1-1.5 million filtering units called Glomeruli. These glomeruli consisted of many microscopic clusters of tiny blood vessels known as capillaries with little holes.

These blood vessels are structured so that they leak fluid from the bloodstream into a system of small tubules.

The tubules secrete and reabsorb the chemicals and substances from the fluid to form urine. The urine then passes from the tubules into larger and larger tubes until it leaves kidneys symptoms, not filtering.

Normally this filtering system permits fluid and small molecules (if there is no protein or blood cells — Asymptomatic Proteinuria and Hematuria Syndrome Causes) to leak into the tubules.

Diseases that harm our kidneys get categorized into three types, based on the way they affect various parts of the kidneys:

• Glomerulonephritis (or nephritic syndrome) – This type of disease causes damaged blood cells and, consequently, protein leak from the glomerular capillaries to the urine. Ultimately Glomerulies becomes inflated. Glomerulonephritis is a Hereditary problem and is also called Hereditary Nephritis.
• Nephrotic syndrome – Damage to the capillaries of the glomeruli causes proteins to leak into the urine.
• Tubulointerstitial nephritis – Inflammation of the tubules and the tissues surrounding the tubules (interstitium).

In some cases, you may found both glomerulonephritis and nephrotic syndrome.

A separate reflux nephropathy disorder is caused due to reflux of urine from the bladder up to the kidneys. This will leads to a urinary tract infection. Further, this may lead to inflammation and scarring of the kidneys.

What is Glomerulonephritis?

Glomerulonephritis is a kind of kidney disease that results due to our kidneys getting damaged. It means that it helps to filter out toxic wastes and fluids from the blood. It happens due to problems with the body’s immune system also.

When the kidney gets injured, it will stop functioning, such as separating the wastes and extra toxic or unwanted fluid in the body. Sometimes, the kidneys, in the future, may go into non-working conditions completely, resulting in kidney failure.

Glomerulonephritis Symptoms of kidneys not filtering

The condition may develop fast, and kidney functioning would get lost within a few hours or days or weeks or months. It is called Progressive Glomerulonephritis.

The following, you may see some risks for the conditions like:

• Blood or lymphatic system disorders
• Infections such as strep infections, viruses, heart infections, or abscesses, etc.
• History of cancer
• Exposure to hydrocarbon solvents

Many conditions increase the risk of glomerulonephritis symptoms of kidneys, not filtering. Below are some Medical terminologies which are tough to understand, such as:

• Amyloidosis – A type of disorder in which a protein called amyloid builds up in the organs and tissues
• Vasculitis or Polyarteritis – A condition that affects the glomerular basement membrane, a part of the kidney that helps filter out the wastes, toxins, and extra fluid from the blood.
• Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis – Causes damage to the glomeruli.
• Anti-glomerular basement membrane disease – It weakens the immune capacity.
• Analgesic nephropathy syndrome – This is also a kidney disease happens due to heavy use of pain reliever medicines and especially NSAIDs
• Henoch-Schönlein purpura – This is also a disease that involves purple spots on the skin, joint pain, gastrointestinal problems.
• IgA nephropathy – It is a type of disorder in which antibodies called IgA to build up in kidney tissue
• Lupus nephritis – Causes kidney complication of lupus
• Membranoproliferative GN – is a form of glomerulonephritis due to an abnormal buildup of antibodies in the kidneys.

What treatment is available for glomerulonephritis?

Sometimes you may need proper medication with an artificial kidney machine to eliminate excess fluid and regulate high blood pressure and kidney failure.

Antibiotics are not used for glomerulonephritis, although they are essential in treating other diseases associated with a bacterial infection. If your condition is becoming severely immediately, you may get high dosages of medicines that affect your immune system in specific ways.

Sometimes, your doctor may ask you for plasmapheresis, a unique blood filtering process to remove harmful proteins from your blood.

The doctor may ask you to:

• Take diuretics called “water pills” to treat puffiness and swelling
• Use calcium supplements
• Control your blood pressure
• Eat less protein, salt, and potassium

What is Nephrotic syndrome?

Nephrotic syndrome is a kidney disorder. It causes our kidneys when nephrons pass too much protein in our urine.

The nephrotic syndrome usually happens due to damage to the clusters of small blood vessels or capillaries in our kidneys, which filters our blood toxins, solid wastes, and excess water. In this condition, swelling, particularly in your feet and ankles, creates the risk of other health problems.

Treatment for nephrotic syndrome consists of treating the condition that’s causing it and taking medications. Nephrotic syndrome can increase our risk of infections, blood clots, etc. The doctor may ask you for drugs and dietary changes to prevent complications.

Nephrotic Syndrome Symptoms of kidneys, not filtering:

Below are some signs which indicate Nephrotic Syndrome, such as,

• Edema (Severe swelling), especially around our eyes and on our ankles and feet
• Fatigue
• Weight gain due to fluid retention
• Foamy or Cloudy urine, due to excess protein in the urine
• Loss of appetite

Some of the Complications & Risks associated with Nephrotic Syndrome symptoms of kidneys not filtering, if not treated properly, such as,

• Diabetic kidney disease
• High blood cholesterol
• Poor nutrition
• Blood clots
• Amyloidosis
• Membranous nephropathy
• Systemic lupus erythematosus
• Acute kidney injury & Chronic Kidney Disease.
• Also, Infectious Diseases.

What is Tubulointerstitial nephritis?

Tubulointerstitial nephritis is a type of kidney inflammation that affects the smaller kidney tubules and the interstitial tissues in between them.

Tubulointerstitial nephritis could occur in an acute or a chronic form. The sensitive type happens due to overdose of drugs or immediate allergic reactions(almost 95%), chronic exposure of chemical toxins, and maybe environmental conditions like natural or synthetics pollutants.

Also, herbs or occupational chemicals may cause long-term damage to the Kidney tubules. In some cases, Metabolic disorders may also be responsible for chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis.

The Drugs which makes this condition for causing symptoms of kidneys not filtering such as,

• Diuretics such as thiazides or frusemide
• Ciprofloxacin
• NSAIDs
• Rifampicin
• Beta-lactams, the most frequent offenders
• Anticonvulsants such as phenytoin, etc.

Summary

Above explained three symptoms of kidneys, not filtering, gives comprehensive, short, but essential knowledge about our kidney filtering disorders.

It can be hereditary, or maybe excessive drugs or intake of any other form of complex substances makes your renal infected and causes long-term damage to filtration functions. Precaution should be the first step taken as Being Human follows nature’s law, like the following:

• Eating habits
• Don’t rely on fast or quick baking foods
• Excessive use of Fatty Acids
• Animal Proteins
• Quit smoking
• Less amount of drinking alcohol
• Any other medicinal drugs which might cause damage to renal capillaries.

Get the proper directions from Renal Specialist Doctors only, who tells you about the exact cause, reasons, and symptoms of kidneys, not filtering. He/she may ask you for any tests, diagnosis, etc., follow that religiously.

It helps you a lot from future consequences. As always, I would like to repeat the same sentence, “Precaution is Better than Cure.”

FAQ

What causes low kidney filtration?

If you have gone through the above article and previously explained kidney functioning posts, it demonstrates our rentals’ basic functioning.

Filtration of our blood makes us healthy and forms the urine as waste or unwanted material extracted from our blood.

If our blood got unfiltered and went back to the heart, we would be witnessing new types of diseases, complications, infections, etc. which will be different from existing symptoms of kidneys not filtering.

How do you tell if your kidneys are not filtering?

The possible way to identify such a scenario is that,

• Bad smelling urine
• Reduced amount of urine.
• Creation of Kidney Stones in the Bladder or Renal Cavities.
• Fever and cold feelings (especially in summer)
• Back pain (Near kidney location)
• High Blood pressure.
• Increase in obesity
• Unexplained and sudden Difficulty in breathing.

What will happen if kidneys are not filtering urine?

The intention is not to filter the urine, and instead, it would be filtering our blood by kidneys. When kidneys get unfiltered blood, the nephrons are responsible for filtering blood, separates fluids, complex unwanted substances, and supplies back filtered blood to the heart for further process.

In this process, nephrons, which are exclusively the Glomerulus, take part in the filtration of blood and urine creation, which will be available for drainage through ureters and finally through the bladder and urethra.

Once the kidney stops functioning filtration, there would be more and more accumulation of substances, leading to blood vessel damage, cysts formations, infections, and other complications.

Just think that Kidneys are like Water filter. If the filter gets damaged, you taste smelly or non-purified water, which causes Water-Borne Diseases like typhoid, Cholera, Diarrhea, etc.

How can I improve my kidney filtration?

You must drink as sufficient water as you can, incredibly Hot water, Warm water, or Luke warm water, which continuously improves everything to clean up. Including your stomach, kidney, and Acidic blood also. Many doctors prove it; try it for seven days, and comment below about your experience.

Besides hot water, avoid animal proteins, sugar foods, salty items, smoking, alcohol, etc. It helps a lot even when you get the symptoms of kidneys, not filtering or any kidney disease.

Because these are preventive measures, and the Globally known sentence states, “Prevention is better than Cure.”

Can kidney filters repair themselves?

Yes, the possibility is that, if you take preventive measures on doctors’ time and advice, then there is a 90% chance to get kidneys to repair their filters themselves. But it takes time and energy to get rid of kidney filtering disorders.

Once you avoid attention to it by making silly mistakes or laziness, it would lead to a series of kidney problems, failures, and finally, death also.

Nowadays, trending COVID-19 may also affect your kidney problems more severely if not following proper caution and procedures correctly.