View Single Post
Old 04-03-2012, 06:01 PM  
Hamtastic
Retired Moderators
 
Hamtastic's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: U.S.A.
Posts: 6,330
Default Re: Chronic Kidney Disease / Chronic Renal Failure: diagnosis, "treatment" options

Introduction to Chronic Kidney Disease (and nomenclature)

Kidney function can become impaired due to any number of conditions, including Cushings disease. It is often difficult to diagnose exactly what causes kidney failure, as blood tests are required along with urine samples, and hamsters are already tiny and fragile to extract blood. Furthermore, kidney failure is not reversible, and neither is a condition like Cushings, so knowing the cause is not necessarily helpful. What is important is to know what to do once kidneys begin to function poorly to delay the build up of toxins in blood to critical levels.

The condition of impaired kidney function is called Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and has also been called Chronic Renal Failure, though the first term is now considered correct nomenclature.

Kidneys remove toxic waste from hamsters’ bodies and conserve water. Impaired kidneys don’t do a good job of filtering out the toxins and cause their accumulation in blood, which can be seen in abnormal blood test results. Loss of fluid through urination also occurs, as the filtering function of kidneys worsens, and instead of concentrated small amounts of urine, frequent urination of dilute liquid is seen. Eventually, without treatment, a hamster will become severely dehydrated and also reach a critical level of toxins in blood, reslting in uremic poisoning (which is eventually fatal). Proteins are also lost through urine, resulting in weight loss.

A good summary of the disease and definitions of concepts given to me by my Vet (from Kindness Animal hospital in Waltham, MA, U.S.A.)

Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
__________________
~ Maxwell ~ Hamilton ~ Tofu ~
Reward yourself and make a hamster in need happy - Consider Adoption!

Last edited by Hamtastic; 04-03-2012 at 06:33 PM.
Hamtastic is offline   Reply With Quote