Kidney Disease:

A Silent Problem

Henry has been having a hard time 

managing his health. He knows he’s got 

high blood pressure and diabetes, but he just 

can’t resist extra helpings of his wife’s fry 

bread. During a checkup, Dr. Begay tested 

Henry’s blood. The results showed Henry 

had developed chronic kidney 

disease. Henry wondered 

if the test results could be 

wrong because he didn’t 

feel sick. Dr. Begay 

explained that people 

with kidney disease often 

do not know it. That’s why 

it is called a “silent” disease. 

You have two kidneys, each the size of a 

fist. Your kidneys have an important job. 

They filter waste out of your blood and 
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remove extra water from your blood to

make urine. Your kidneys also control

your blood pressure and make hormones

that your body needs to stay healthy. 

Kidney Disease 

Kidney disease can sometimes develop

very quickly, and when this happens, it

is called acute kidney injury. Depending

on the cause and severity of the problem,

this form of kidney disease can sometimes

get better. 

The more common form of kidney

disease happens slowly, over a long period 

of time. This is called chronic kidney 

kidneys
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disease. You might hear it called CKD. 

Chronic kidney disease is a lifetime 

illness; it will not go away. 

Chronic kidney disease is a widespread problem, especially in older 

people. In an early stage of the disease,

the kidneys don’t do a good job of 

removing extra water and waste out of 

the blood. 

Over time, the problem gets worse, 

and the kidneys may completely stop 

working. This is called end-stage renal 

disease or ESRD. Renal is another word 

for kidney. When kidney disease gets 

very bad, it can cause other problems like 

heart disease, bone disease, arthritis, and 

nerve damage. 

Medicine And Your Kidneys

Older people often take lots of medicines. 

Kidneys help to filter out parts of the 

medicines that the body does not use. 

Kidney disease makes it hard for the 

kidneys to do this job. If you have kidney 

disease, your doctor may need to change 

the dose of some of your medicines. Sometimes this can make the kidney problem 

get better. Your doctor may also tell 

you not to take some over-the-counter 

medicines, like those for arthritis.
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Who Is At Risk?

Diabetes and high blood pressure 

are two major causes of kidney disease. 

People who have heart disease also have 

an increased risk for kidney disease. 

Family history may also play a role 

in your risk for kidney disease. This 

means that if someone in your family, 

like your mother, father, sister, or 

brother, has kidney disease, you are 

more likely to have it too.

In addition, people of certain 

races and ethnicities, such as African 

Americans, Hispanics, and Native 

Americans, seem to have a greater 

chance of developing kidney disease.

Age is another factor. As you get 

older, your kidneys may not work as well 

as when you were younger. Ask your 

doctor to help you keep track of how 

well your kidneys are working.

Tests For Kidney Disease

Kidney disease often does not have 

any symptoms. In fact, you might feel 

fine right up to the point when your 

kidneys nearly stop working. Only your 

doctor can tell if you have kidney disease. 

There are two kinds of tests your 

doctor can do to see if you have kidney 

disease: a blood test and a urine test. 
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The blood test, called GFR, measures 

how much blood your kidneys filter each

minute. Your doctor uses this information

to see how well your kidneys are working.

A GFR of over 60 means your kidneys 

are working fine. A GFR of 60 or lower 

may mean you have kidney disease. 

You cannot raise your GFR, but there are 

things you can do to keep it from getting 

lower (see the section Prevent Your Kidneys 

From Getting Worse). 

The urine test shows if you have 

a kind of protein, called albumin, in 

your urine. Protein in your urine can 

be a sign of kidney 

damage. It is more 

common in people 

who have diabetes. 

Your doctor may need 

to do additional tests 

to confirm whether or 

not you have kidney 

disease. 

Because most people who have 

kidney disease also have diabetes, high 

blood pressure, or both, your doctor 

might also check to see if you have these 

problems. 

The earlier kidney disease is found, 

the sooner you can start a treatment to 

keep your kidneys healthier longer.
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Prevent Your Kidneys From 

Getting Worse

There is no cure for kidney disease. 

But, there are things you can do to help 

keep your kidneys from getting worse. 

If your kidney disease is in an early 

stage, meaning your kidneys are still 

working, your doctor may prescribe 

blood pressure medicine and a diuretic 

(water pill) to lower your blood pressure 

and protect kidney function. You may

also have to make some lifestyle 

changes, like eating a special low-salt 

diet and exercising regularly to keep 

a healthy weight. 

At Your Next Doctor Visit, 

Find Out: 

F Your GFR

F The amount of albumin (protein) in 

your urine

F Your blood pressure 

F Your blood glucose (high blood 

glucose can be a sign of diabetes)

You can keep track of your results using

Your Kidney Test Results, a fact sheet 

available from the National Kidney 

Disease Education Program at 

www.nkdep.nih.gov/resources.
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Treatment For End-Stage 

Renal Disease

If your kidneys have stopped 

working, meaning you are in end-stage 

renal disease, there are treatments 

that can replace your kidney 

function. Two main options 

are dialysis and a transplant. 

Dialysis is a special 

process that removes 

waste and water 

from your blood. 

Dialysis is done at a 

special center about three 

times a week or at home while 

you sleep. Your doctor will 

decide which is right for you. 

A transplant is when you get a 

healthy kidney from a donor. Because 

people have two kidneys, a living 

person, usually a family member, can 

give you one of his or her kidneys. 

Talk with your doctor about 

whether dialysis or a transplant might 

work for you. 

Medicare And Kidney Disease

Medicare may help pay for some 

kidney disease education and treatment. 

Contact Medicare to learn more about
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what is covered. Look for the publications 

Medicare Coverage of Kidney Dialysis and 

Kidney Transplant Services, Medicare 

and Kidney Disease Education, and Your 

Medicare Benefits on the Medicare 

website, www.medicare.gov/Publications. 

For More Information 

Here are some helpful resources:

American Association of Kidney 

Patients

3505 East Frontage Road, Suite 315

Tampa, FL 33607

1-800-749-2257 (toll-free)

www.aakp.org 

American Kidney Fund

6110 Executive Boulevard, Suite 1010

Rockville, MD 20852

1-866-300-2900 (toll-free)

www.kidneyfund.org

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 

Services 

7500 Security Boulevard 

Baltimore, MD 21244-1850 

1-800-633-4227 (1-800-MEDICARE, 

toll-free)

1-877-486-2048 (TTY/toll-free) 

www.medicare.gov
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National Institute of Diabetes and 

Digestive and Kidney Diseases

(NIDDK) Clearinghouse

3 Information Way

Bethesda, MD 20892-3580

1-800-891-5390 (toll-free)

1-866-569-1162 (TTY/toll-free)

www.kidney.niddk.nih.gov

For NIDDK’s National Kidney Disease 

Education Program

1-866-454-3639 (1-866-4-KIDNEY,

toll-free)

www.nkdep.nih.gov

National Kidney Foundation

30 East 33rd Street

New York, NY 10016

1-800-622-9010 (toll-free)

1-212-889-2210

www.kidney.org

National Library of Medicine

MedlinePlus

www.medlineplus.gov 
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National Institutes of Health 

U.S. Department of Health & 

Human Services

April 2011

For more information on health and 

aging, contact:

National Institute on Aging

Information Center

P.O. Box 8057

Gaithersburg, MD 20898-8057

1-800-222-2225 (toll-free)

1-800-222-4225 (TTY/toll-free)

www.nia.nih.gov

www.nia.nih.gov/Espanol

To sign up for regular email alerts 

about new publications and other 

information from the NIA, go to 

www.nia.nih.gov/health.

Visit www.nihseniorhealth.gov, a seniorfriendly website from the National 

Institute on Aging and the National 

Library of Medicine. This website has 

health and wellness information for 

older adults. Special features make it 

simple to use. For example, you can 

click on a button to have the text read 

out loud or to make the type larger.

National Institute on Aging