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Show : Role Of Diabetes In Kidney Failure Told Dr. DiMd HcnJerson spoke Thursday night at the Bountiful Library concerning the role of di-iMrs di-iMrs in kidney diseases. He noted that at present. 50 percent of j'jscnile-onsct diabetes will ocn-IUiih ocn-IUiih sutler renal failure, w it h kid- ," ks unable to function. The figure ' is 10 percent of aJult-onsct di.ibc- 1' Dcs-HE Dcs-HE DLSCRIBF.I) several kidney ixents often found in diabetics, is follows: Diabetic nephropathy describes a situation in which the LJnes and their blood vessels become be-come a mass of scar tissue unable to perform their role of filtering the b!ood. This is not reversible. ' Swelling becomes evident, as fluids go into the body tissues instead in-stead of into the blood, and protein deficiency occurs as protein leaks Y into the urine, at first intermittently ind then constantly. I This is detectable by a test at the physician's office. Dialysis has fair I . success in handling diabetic nephropathy, and is getting better. ,, hut the best hope currently is for a - kdney transplant. FN PAPILLARY necrose, por- i:" lions of the kidney w hich help filter the bliKvJ can literally separate or fall off from the kidney and become almost like a kidney stone, often entering the urinary tiact. This is accompanied by some fever. In Pyelonephritis, infections of the kidney occur, which are particularly parti-cularly difficult for diabetics to overcome, especially in females. Pain occurs in the lower back and kidney area, and high fever occurs. The disease is diagnosablc by the physician detecting white infection-fighting cells in the urine. Treatment consists of drinking plenty of water (always a good practice in limiting damage from kidney diseases) and controlled diet. ANY BLADDER infection should be promptly treated before it gets worse. Prostate problems in men over age 50 can sometimes mimic kidney problems, in an inability ina-bility to empty the bladder. Diabetic Diabe-tic women who get pregnant may have some kidney swelling as the enlarged uterus pushes on the tubes. In Neurogenic bladder cases, the nerves are impaired. The bladder docs not empty as well, resulting in infections. In cases of inability to empty the bladder, a catheter insertion, in-sertion, taught by the physician, can sometimes help. RKN.AL KAILl'RK (kidney loss of funclion) is the cause of a high proportion of the deaths in diabetics. diabe-tics. It is good to drink a lot of water, preferably at least 8 to 12 glasses per day, except perhaps in the case of certain heart conditions. condi-tions. Soda pop, however, should be avoided. Irinking slightly acidic aci-dic drinks such as cranberry juice may help slightly, but not nearly as much as folklore has it. Many medicines for high blood pressure arc diuretics, which makes the kidneys kid-neys excrete more fluid. Following Dr. Henderson's discussion dis-cussion (given immediately after being in surgery for seven hours), Marcic Ferguson, secretary of the South Davis Diabetes chapter of the American Diabetes Association, Associa-tion, prov ided some recipes for the holidays for diabetics. Mrs. Ferguson Fergu-son is a dietician at the Veterans Hospital, and expert on diabetic nutrition. |