POZ Community Forums
Main Forums => Living With HIV => Topic started by: skycee on February 16, 2013, 02:30:25 pm
-
Just after my diagnosis i observed i peed a bit too often and not just that, it was just too bubbly, i once heard a doctor telling a patient that bubbly urine wasnt a good sign So in the back of my mind i had started doing the maths, wondering what if i have this extra variable added to this unsolveable equation. I spoke to my doctor about it then and he said it was nothing, since it doesn't hurt when i pee then its not an infection.
Days turned to weeks and then months and it was still same issue, i spoke to my doctor again about it and he did a quick urine stripe test and said i was fine and my blood sugar was ok and i wasn't diabetic.
The whole of this week i kept feeling this very lil pain in my lower back, and sometimes the middle area and my mind keeps wondering what's going on now, i kept hoping it wld stop buh its just there, very light buh i feel it, feels more like heaviness than pain.
So i decided to go back today to my doctor and told him straight up, i need a kidney function test done he said i should come back on monday and ensure i drink lots of water over the weekend.
I read somewhere that kidneys don't heal, and most times the degeneration continues meaning most people with kidney issues would have to either be on dialysis or go for a transplant. When a transplant is done patients are placed on drugs to suppress the immune system to avoid the organ rejection, what does this mean for someone living with hiv been that HARRT is meant to build up the immune system, looking at it from the peripheral view i can already see some form of adverse interaction....
Does anyone have an idea what i should expect per adventure the kidneys have gone south
-
Hi Ski , I would defer to your docs opinion about the health of your kidneys .
If the lab numbers show some amount of dysfunction that doesn't mean your kidneys are going to fail . I have friends and family that have had issues with the kidneys and quickly bounced back to normal values after the aggravating circumstances were corrected .
I sincerely doubt you are on any downward spiral that cant be remedied .
-
Hi Ski.
I have had Stage 1 Chronic Kidney Disease for about 3 years, it actually is right on the border of Stage 1 and 2 and bounces back and forth between the two. FYI I've never had any pain in my lower back or any other symptoms.
It hasnt gotten worse, and Im doing fine. Doc is not really concerned about it and we are doing nothing for it at this point except watching it. I do the 24hour pee test about once a year and thats it.
Of course when I was told I had Kidney disease I freaked. But Doc explained to me I could go forever with this degree of impairment and be fine, and that it may actually get better.
Good luck, and dont worry too much ;)
-
I have similar symptoms with my kidneys since I've started Atripla. From what I've read, this may be one of the side effects of the drug -- I don't know if you're on it also.
I sort of feel like, I don't have the dull ache in my lower sides if I stay hydrated, drink more cranberry juice and reduce my red meat intake.
I hope you feel better.
-
I regularly have foamy urine. Since no labs were off, I assumed it was a heavy stream that was causing it. I just noticed on my next labs, my doc is doing a complete urinalysis, for the very first time.
All the best with your test, and nothing is amiss.
-
Thanks guys for the response, I'm truly hoping for the best and also hope that I've not crossed the point where corrections can be made, been that i raised this issue months ago with my doctor and he didn't take it seriously i wld be very hurt.
I have similar symptoms with my kidneys since I've started Atripla. From what I've read, this may be one of the side effects of the drug -- I don't know if you're on it also.
I sort of feel like, I don't have the dull ache in my lower sides if I stay hydrated, drink more cranberry juice and reduce my red meat intake.
I hope you feel better.
I'm not on meds yet.
Thanks once again y'all
-
I'll be watching for updates by you, since I've noticed that I have very foamy piss since I've started on meds. My lab numbers were awful at first, but as soon as I switched from truvada/prezista/norvir to Atripla, the lab results returned to normal range. But I still have foamy piss and I still get "it's nothing" from my doc.
I've recently read that antibodies are found in the urine, so I'm wondering if the foam is the excretion of the antibodies. Could be a stretch, but just throwing it out there.
-
Your doctor should be doing a metabolic panel during your routine blood work. The panel will check for your creatinine levels. From here they calculate your eGFR which measures the amount of kidney damage you have.
Do you have the values from previous lab results? If so, check the creatinine levels to see if they are off.
Don't make a leap from you have foamy pee to your in kidney failure.
-
Don't make a leap from you have foamy pee to your in kidney failure.
But it's so fun to do even if my doctor tells me not to!
-
Thanks bug...
i wld be doing the test today, to get the values tomorrow, would keep y'all updated.
Thank you
-
OK, so I got my results today and my doctor says everything is ok, the result is stated below.
S-UREA 4.2mmol/L Normal range (2.1-7.1)
S-CREATININE 109umol/L Normal range (80-115)
eGFR-(CKD-EPI) 77mL/min
Not that I understand so much what they all mean buh he says everything is within the normal range, however looking closely the creatinine result is almost boarder line.
And a small note on the result sheet says "May be consistent with normal kidney function or early renal disease".....this is the part I dont understand?
Well Doctor says I am fine, so I would monitor things and maybe run another test in about 6months. Would be grateful if anyone can shed more light on the results and advice on things I can do to improve kidney health, I have been drinking tonnes of Cranberry lately too.
Thanks y'all
-
Does anyone have a comment or opinion as regards my last post.....
-
What's to comment on? They're in normal range and your doctor said there isn't anything to be worried about. Am I missing something?
Frankly I think you're just trying to find something to worry about unnecessarily.
-
Thanks miss P for ur comment.....
Not like i want something to worry about, buh truth be told i know my body, and pee-ing a bubble bath 6-8 times daily is a constant reminder that there is something unusual somewhere.
Ive asked that someone advice on what one can do to maintain a good kidney simply because i know there is a wealth of information here on the forum.....it seems today that im worried over nothing buh this same info would be helpful to someone so long as this forum remains and the internet remains.
So please allow me to rant, allow me to worry and allow me to ask my questions......and donot discourage people who may have experienced what i'm trying to figure out from commenting.
Thank you Miss P
-
Hi Skycee. I read your post about having foamy urine and mild lower back pain. I'm having the exact same symptoms on a generic combination of Atripla. I'm almost on my 6th month. My labs came back normal when I had it last month. Did you change meds yet? Were you actually experiencing kidney issues? Your response will be greatly appreciated :)
-
frederick
Watch it with the old threads (zombie threads). Best leave them be and if wanted either PM someone or open your own thread with your concerns.
To be honest this one made me cough whilst drinking my coffee and spill down my leg...
Anyhow your labs are fine, my piss is foamy every time I think too much, its not my kidneys. If your concerned see your doctor not everything is HIV related in life.
Jim