Health

Chronic Kidney Disease — More Common in Older Adults

Your kidneys serve as a powerful filtering system for your entire body, working 24 hours a day to remove excess wastes and water from your blood. Yet for many older adults, the kidneys slowly begin to lose their ability to function over time — resulting in an illness known as chronic kidney disease (CKD). “This is a complex, chronic condition that is common in older adults and increases with age,” explains UAB internal medicine specialist C. Barrett Bowling, M.D. “In fact, the prevalence of chronic kidney disease may be as high as 40% in people over the age of 70, compared to less than 1% in individuals 20 to 40 years old.”

Early Signs

Dr. Bowling says that the problem in diagnosing chronic kidney disease in its early stages is that there are often no symptoms. “Because loss of kidney function takes months or years to occur, most people don’t realize they have the disease until kidney function is significantly impaired,” he explains. An early sign of the disease is a reduction in the kidney’s ability to filter blood normally, which can be detected with a simple urine test to check for protein or a blood test to measure the serum creatinine in the blood. “These tests are effective in determining how well the kidneys are working to filter the blood,” says Dr. Bowling. “If abnormal levels are found, your physician can work closely with you in identifying factors that are causing reduced kidney function.”

Common Causes and Treatment

Dr. Bowling emphasizes that the most common causes of chronic kidney disease in older adults are diabetes and high blood pressure. “It’s critically important to treat these conditions to prevent a progression of chronic kidney disease that, in later stages, can result in kidney failure and the need for dialysis.”

Also, Dr. Bowling says that many older adults may not realize that overuse of over-the-counter NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) can also impair kidney function and, over time, lead to chronic kidney disease. “For this reason, it’s important that older adults tell their physicians about all of the medications they’re taking,” stresses Dr. Bowling.

Older adults with chronic kidney disease are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease, memory impairment, functional decline, bone loss, and frailty. Because there is no specific treatment for chronic kidney disease, Dr. Bowling says that the focus is on managing the causes — such as diabetes and hypertension – to prevent a progression of the disease. “It’s very important for older adults, especially those with a history of diabetes or high blood pressure, to ask their doctor to check for signs of kidney disease with a urine test or blood work,” he emphasizes. “Awareness is a key factor in identifying and managing chronic kidney disease in older adults.”