Respiratory Tract Infections and Nephrotic Syndrome

Nephrotic Syndrome is also known as nephrosis and is characterized by the presence of proteinuria, oedema, hyperlipidaemia, and hypoalbuminaemia. It can be caused by a wide range of primary and secondary diseases, among which respiratory tract infection is one of the most common factor. In this text, we will discuss about the relationship between respiratory tract infections and Nephrotic Syndrome.

1. Nephrotic Syndrome can be induced by a respiratory tract infection

When a person gets affected by a respiratory tract infection, a bacteria or virus will enter into the body easily. In order to rid these germs, the immunocyte will devour them. During the process of killing bacterium and virus, immunocyte become dead. For people with weak physique, there are less immunocyte.

In some cases, these cells fail to devour the germs, but bind up with them temporarily, forming a kind of immune complex. The immune complex circulates in the blood, and then deposit on the glomerular basement membrane, causing damage to the glomeruli-tiny filters of the kidneys. With increased permeability, more and more protein will be spilt, and eventually cause Nephrotic
Syndrome.

2. Respiratory tract infections may aggravate the effects of Nephrotic Syndrome

Infection is also a common complication of the disease, which can lead to relapse and poor therapeutic effects if not treated timely or thoroughly. In severe cases, patients face the danger of death, so patients should pay much attention to it.

The following are some suggestions that can help patients prevent infections:

▪ In order to improve the immune ability, people can do regular exercises, such as biking, walking, jogging, etc. Moreover, some medications can be taken under the doctor's permission.

▪ Avoid catching a cold or over-strain work as well as has better not go to the crowed places.

▪ Get enough protein from the daily diet. Proper foods contained high-quality protein include lean meat, fish, eggs, etc.

Identify Renal Failure by Frequent Urination--Its Very First Symptom

Frequent urination at night is the earliest Symptom of Renal Failure or some kind of kidney disease. Evidence-based statistics reveals that 1 out of 12 Americans suffer from kidney disease and somehow, progress to Renal Failure and accounts for the increasing cases of death. In addition, Renal Failure or kidney disease is a kind of most expensive disease to treat. Actually, only a small percentage of cases results from serious kidney disease, most of the Renal Failure or ESRD (End-stage Renal Disease) result from kidney aliments, meaning that Renal Failure or ESRD is preventable and treatable. Certainly, detecting the very early symptoms ofKidney Failure should start from marking those symptoms.

The earliest symptom is frequent urination at night, which is closely connected with the kidney problems. The frequent urination at night refers to the need to urinate more often than usual.
This is pretty serious even at night. Usually, the amount of urine excretion at night is as much as half of the amount in the daytime. To be more specific, the symptom is not only connects with glomerular disease and chronic renal tubular interstitial disease, but also appears in people with high blood pressure and diabetes.

The urinary infection tract, sometimes, can cause the symptoms too. Urinary tract infection includes not only the upper urinary tract but also the lower urinary tract. The lower urinary tract infection called cystitis, while the upper urinary tract includes kidneys. If the infection moves to the kidneys, other symptoms such as chills, fatigue, nausea and high fever. One thing need your attention is that a long-term urinary tract infection will affect your kidneys causing kidney problems and if left untreated, it can progress to Renal Failure in the long run.

Can A Child with Nephrotic Syndrome Play Sports

Nephrotic Syndrome occurs when the kidneys cannot work properly and leak massive protein into the urine. This disease can affect people of any age, but is usually first seen in children at age of 2 to 5. Parents may wonder whether a child with Nephrotic Syndrome can play sports. Continue reading to find the answer.


For children with this disease, there is something wrong with the sieve mechanism of the kidney. The holes of the sieve become enlarged, allowing large amounts of protein to be released from the body in the urine.


Can A Child with Nephrotic Syndrome Play Sports?

When the disease relapses, some parents would keep their kids off school. Consequently, they will have a lot of missed schooling. Generally speaking, you need not to keep them off school, even when the disease relapses. School attendance is permissible unless they are really unwell with symptoms. Restricting their activity is not necessary, and exercise is important for all the family. For kids with good remission, a full level of activity is possible, and they can continue to play sports normally.

In order to manage a good daily care, you can pay attention to the following aspects:

▪ Avoid being affected by infections. Parents are suggested to protect their children from catching a cold. Keep away from persons who have infectious diseases.

▪ Have enough bed rest, especially for those with serious edema and hypertension.

▪ Arrange a proper diet. Guarantee the energy supply of the body, and restrict the intake of protein and sodium. Specific amount varies from case to case. Consult your doctor or our online experts for an detailed analysis.

High Creatinine Levels after Kidney Transplantation

Kidney transplantation happens after one’s kidney function is less than 15% left. This stage is called ESRD (End-stage Renal Disease), also known as CKD stage 5. Patients with CKD stage 5 or ESRD have to live with dialysis or kidney transplantation because their kidneys couldn’t function properly. Your new kidney may not work well in your body; the patient may experience high creatinine levels once again.

Patient may wonder why would that happen, and they probably would ask don’t I suppose to get a brand-new kidney, but how to explain these old problems? High creatinine levels, no matter occurs in people with Renal Failure or those after transplant, indicate the decreased kidney function. The elevated creatinine level depends on the cause of kidney dysfunction. Without examining, one cannot comment the possibility. But there are possible following reasons, just for your information.

For those whose Renal Failure or ESRD induced by the primary disease, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, or some autoimmune disease, their raised creatinine level may result from the poorly treated or controlled primary disease.

Well, things change when one has a transplant rejection. This usually happens shortly after the surgery. It is your own immune system recognizes the foreign matter and then attacks it spontaneously. In serious cases, the anti-rejection drugs fail to suppress one’s immune system and lead to transplant failure in the end.

Other reasons accounting for the boosted creatinine level is urologic complication, infection, nephrotoxic drugs or unfavorable internal environment. All those may result in a kidney transplantation failure because the new kidney needs time to get used to the environment but those factors deprive of its right.

Why Diabetes would lead to Renal Failure

Diabetes becomes a worldwide health problem since over 20 million people in the United States are affected with this disease. Whatever type one or type 2 diabetes is a disease in which the body fails to produce sufficient insulin or can’t use the insulin properly. People with diabetes would suffer from high blood sugar and fatigue.

Diabetes can cause problems in many organs of your body, such as heart, liver, kidneys and so on. Among all those problems, Renal Failure is pretty common. But how does the diabetes affect one’s kidneys and finally lead to Renal Failure?

Diabetes mellitus affects small blood vessels in the whole body and then poses damages on them. Due to the impaired blood vessels, the blood flow to kidneys will probably decrease. And then ischemia and oxygen deficit occurs, resulting in the kidneys fail to work properly. The kidney problem causes a series of serious consequences, such as water and salt are retained and can’t be discharged from the blood, swelling appears, protein leaks, and toxins building up in human body.

Another reason for Renal Failure induced by diabetes is that the disease may cause urination difficulty. This is a sign of nerve damage. Long-term full bladder has nothing good to your kidneys and is prone to develop urinary tract infection.

Evidence-based statistics from NKF reveals that around 30% of patients with Type 1 diabetes and 10-40% of Type 2 patients would progress to Renal Failure in the end. Scary isn’t it?

One thing you need to know is that no matter what kind of kidney disease, they get a chance to progress to Renal Failure sooner or later if left untreated or poorly controlled. To those with high blood pressure, diabetes, nephritis, or some other kidney disease, please keep an eye open for your illness condition.

Sweet Taste in Mouth for Diabetes

Sweet taste in mouth, also known as dysgeusia, is a problem of alteration of the sensation of taste. In this case, one is not able to enjoy the natural taste of food, which may lead to decreased appetite.

What Causes Sweet Taste in Mouth for Diabetes?

● Certain medicines

Many medicines can cause dry mouth and lead to growth of some bacteria which gives sweet taste.

● Disorder of the digestive system

An enzyme in the saliva called amylase can break down the carbohydrates (starch) into simple sugars, such as maltose. Ptyalin, secreted by the pancreas, is one of the main amylase enzymes found in the mouth. For people with diabetes, more ptyalin will be secreted. As a result, more maltose can be produced, leading to occurrence of sweet taste in the mouth.


● High blood sugar level

High blood sugar level in patients with this disease will lead to increased number of sugar in spittle, thus leading to the occurrence of sweet taste in mouth.

In addition, without good control of blood sugar levels, a condition called diabetic ketoacidosis can be caused in which there is much accumulation of ketones in the body. As a result, fruity smelling breath may occur.

Diet for People with Diabetes and Kidney Failure

Diabetes is a chronic disease of insulin deficiency or resistance wherein disturbances in carbohydrates, fats and proteins metabolism result in high blood sugar levels. Long-standing Diabetes can lead to damage of the kidneys. This damage can cause severe kidney failure. Diet modifications are used to control Diabetes and Kidney Failure.

Protein management

Some nephrologists recommend diets low in protein for individuals with kidney disease because protein can increase the work of the kidneys. To protect the kidneys, lower amount of protein is suggested to eat. Good protein sources for a person with Diabetes and Kidney Failure include fresh chicken, eggs, fish and other types of seafood. Management of protein intake can also restrict phosphorus and potassium amounts in the body.

Carbohydrates management

Complex carbohydrates such as whole grain breads and cereals are recommended to diabetics which can help them stabilize blood sugar levels. People with Diabetes and Kidney Failure can eat high calorie carbohydrates to provide the body with energy. Without enough calories may lead to proteins stored in the body to be broken down to supply energy. This may lead to accumulate of urea in the body due to the damaged kidneys' failing of flushing out these wastes.

Low-Sodium Diet

Sodium is an important mineral which plays a major role in regulating blood pressure and fluid balance in the body. Persons with Diabetes and Kidney Failure are advised to eat a low-sodium diet because excess sodium can increase the risk of heart disease in patients. Since the kidneys have been impaired, they also fail to filter and remove sodium adequately, resulting in sodium retention and symptoms like swelling and puffiness. Avoid high sodium foods such as table salt, potato chips, bouillon cubes, canned soups, instant soups, pretzels, pickles and soy sauce.

Limit fluid intake

In Kidney Failure, the damaged kidneys are unable to excrete excess fluids. Limit fluid intake help avoid further fluid buildup in the body. The fluids intake is limited to their urine output. Diabetics may need to drink more fluids to prevent dehydration caused by frequent urination.