Can diabetic nephropathy undergo kidney transplantation?

Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
Updated on September 28, 2024
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Diabetic nephropathy has now become the leading cause of uremia in China, accounting for the largest proportion. In the 1980s and 1990s, chronic nephritis was the most common cause of uremia in China. Over the past decade, diabetic nephropathy has gradually surpassed chronic nephritis and become the leading condition. This condition requires dialysis or a kidney transplant when it progresses to uremia. Patients with diabetic nephropathy in a uremic state can undergo a kidney transplant. After the transplant, these patients still need to use medications to control their blood sugar and blood pressure, to prevent high blood sugar and high blood pressure from further damaging the new kidney. Of course, if conditions allow, performing a combined kidney and pancreas transplant might yield better results.

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Written by Pan Wu Shan
Nephrology
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Can people with diabetic nephropathy drink alcohol?

Diabetic nephropathy, as the name suggests, is a complication caused by diabetes that leads to kidney problems. The typical symptoms of diabetic nephropathy are significant proteinuria and hypoalbuminemia. Generally speaking, there is no particularly effective treatment for diabetic nephropathy; it can only be managed by keeping blood sugar and blood pressure under control. For patients with diabetic nephropathy, it is recommended to keep fasting blood glucose below 7, and postprandial glucose should be controlled between 8 and 10, which is considered appropriate. If hypertension is present, blood pressure should be kept below 140/80 mmHg. In terms of diet, patients with diabetic nephropathy definitely should not drink alcohol, and they should avoid sweets, fried foods, and foods high in starch. It is also important not to stay up late.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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How many years can a person with diabetic nephropathy live?

Diabetic nephropathy is divided into several stages, from mild to severe. In the early stage, patients only have an increased glomerular filtration rate and the proteinuria is not significant. As the disease progresses, the protein in the urine increases, eventually leading to renal failure and even developing into uremia. The entire process can last many years, with some patients experiencing it for up to ten years. In fact, when diabetic nephropathy progresses to its final stage, uremia, patients still have many treatment options, such as hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, or kidney transplantation, and even combined kidney and pancreas transplantation. Therefore, how long a patient can live depends on the patient's age, presence of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and the choice of treatment methods, among other factors.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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Is diabetic nephropathy with facial swelling serious?

Patients with diabetic nephropathy who experience facial swelling should not use this symptom as a basis for judging the severity of their condition. Diabetic nephropathy is divided into five stages. The condition is relatively mild during the first three stages. By the fourth stage, patients begin to exhibit significant proteinuria, and by the fifth stage, they experience severe renal failure. Conditions in these last two stages are quite severe. However, patients might also experience facial swelling during the first three stages, and while the likelihood of facial swelling increases during the fourth and fifth stages, some patients in these stages might not show obvious edema. Therefore, it is difficult to determine the severity of the condition based solely on swelling. Patients need to undergo 24-hour urinary protein quantification and blood tests to assess kidney function in order to judge the severity of their condition.

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Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
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Is stage three diabetic nephropathy severe?

Stage three of diabetic nephropathy refers to patients who have persistent microalbuminuria, indicating a relatively mild state of the disease at this time. In fact, diabetic nephropathy is divided into five stages. During the first and second stages, patients generally do not exhibit specific symptoms clinically and may even test negative for proteinuria; however, an increase in kidney size and glomerular filtration rate may occur. By the third stage, patients begin to exhibit small or micro amounts of urinary albumin. The pathological damage to the kidneys at this stage is not considered particularly severe. Patients may experience hyalinization of small arteries and nodular lesions in the glomeruli. Within the staging of diabetic nephropathy, this does not constitute a particularly severe phase; however, the condition of the patients may continue to progress, leading to significant proteinuria and even renal failure.

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Written by Zhou Qi
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Which department should diabetic nephropathy patients see?

Diabetic nephropathy is damage to small blood vessels caused by diabetes, and the kidneys contain a large number of small blood vessels. Therefore, it generally takes more than ten years for diabetes to damage these small blood vessels, causing kidney lesions, proteinuria, renal failure, and other clinical manifestations. This disease can be treated in departments specializing in diabetes or endocrinology, as well as in nephrology. In the early stages of diabetic nephropathy, treatment primarily involves controlling blood sugar levels, and visiting departments like diabetes or endocrinology might be more specialized in this regard. These departments are proficient in adjusting medications for blood sugar control. When patients develop significant proteinuria, the condition progresses, and it is advisable to visit nephrology. At this point, the treatment focuses on the kidney lesions, as well as managing complications caused by diabetic nephropathy.