Acute Kidney Injury is a sudden episode of kidney failure or kidney damage, causing a build-up of waste products in your blood and excess fluid in your body. AKI can happen within a few hours or a few days, but it is treatable and your kidneys may recover, unlike in chronic kidney disease where the damage is permanent. Learn the causes and symptoms of Acute Kidney Injury in this program.
In order for a dialysis machine to clean excess fluid or waste material from a person's blood, the patient needs to be connected to the machine, usually for several hours, three times a week. This connection, or fistula, is often made in the patient's arm, where an artery is surgically connected to a vein. Learn more about this access point, or AV fistula, and how it works, by watching this program.
Chronic Kidney Disease, or CKD, happens when your kidneys are no longer fully able to clean waste products and fluid from the blood. CKD can be caused by several things, including high blood pressure, diabetes, injury and genetic problems. As CKD worsens, it can result in kidney failure where dialysis or a kidney transplant are required in order to survive. Learn how following a management plan can help slow the progression of CKD.