Chronic Kidney Disease

First, your healthcare provider will take your medical history, conduct a physical exam, ask about any medications you’re currently taking and ask about any symptoms you’ve noticed.

Your healthcare provider will order blood and urine tests to check kidney function.

Specifically, the blood tests will check:

Your glomerular filtration rate (GFR). This describes how efficiently your kidneys are filtering blood — how many milliliters per minute your kidneys are filtering. Your GFR is used to determine the stage of your kidney disease.
Your serum creatinine level, which tells how well your kidneys are removing this waste product. Creatinine is a waste product from muscle metabolism and is normally excreted in your pee. A high creatinine level in your blood means that your kidneys aren’t functioning well enough to get rid of it in your pee.

Urine tests will look for protein (albumin) and blood in your pee. Well-functioning kidneys shouldn’t contain either.

Other tests may include imaging tests to look for problems with the size and structure of your kidneys — such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and/or computerized tomography (CT) scans. Your healthcare provider may also order a kidney biopsy to check for a specific type of kidney disease or to determine the amount of kidney damage.

Symptoms

When to see a doctor

Request an appointment

Complications

Blood clots are a dangerous complication of atrial fibrillation (AFib). Blood clots can lead to stroke.

The risk of stroke from AFib increases as you grow older. Other health conditions also may increase the risk of a stroke due to AFib. These conditions include:

High blood pressure.
Diabetes.
Heart failure.
Some types of heart valve disease.

Blood thinners are commonly prescribed to prevent blood clots and strokes in people with atrial fibrillation.

Prevention

Healthy lifestyle choices can reduce the risk of heart disease and may prevent atrial fibrillation (AFib). Here are some basic heart-healthy tips:

Control high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
Don't smoke or use tobacco.
Eat a diet that's low in salt and saturated fat.
Exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week unless your health care team says not to.
Get good sleep. Adults should aim for 7 to 9 hours daily.
Maintain a healthy weight.
Reduce and manage stress.

By Freedmans Health Clinic Staff

Living with atrial fibrillation?

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