I was helping my mom fill out some paperwork for my dad. On it they had his "diagnosis" upon being admitting to the nursing home, full of words I don't know (but I will learn): kidney failure, rhabdomyolysis, hypokalemia, hypomagnesmia. Kidney failure I know. But no one ever said "Bob's kidneys are failing." Isn't that kind of, well, IMPORTANT? WebMD says: Acute renal failuremeans that your kidneys have suddenly stopped working. Normally, the kidneys filter wastes and help balance water, salt, and mineral (electrolyte) levels in the blood. When your kidneys stop working, waste products, fluids, and electrolytes build up in your body. This can cause life-threatening problems.....Acute renal failure has three main causes:A sudden serious drop in blood flow to the kidneys....(doesn't seem applicable to my dad).... Damage to the kidneys. Certain medicines, poisons, or infection can damage the kidneys(, including) antibiotics.....(and) common pain medicines ....such as aspirin and ibuprofen (he does take aspirin for his heart. Not sure if they gave him any pain meds.) and lastly, A sudden blockagethat prevents urine from flowing out of the kidneys. Kidney stones, a tumor, an injury, or an enlarged prostate gland can cause a blockage. (My dad hasn't had kidney stones in years, but he does have an enlarged prostate.) So is it being treated or what? Could it be a result of 4 days without proper food or water? Will it get better? Is anyone going to tell me any of this? Now onto the next one, from an online medical encyclopedia: Rhabdomyolysis is the breakdown of muscle fibers resulting in the release of muscle fiber contents (myoglobin) into the bloodstream. Some of these are harmful to the kidney and frequently result in kidney damage....The disorder may be caused by any condition that results in damage to skeletal muscle, especially trauma. (Oh, you mean, like being left alone and falling?) (From health a to z ): Hypokalemia is a condition of below normal levels of potassium in the blood serum. Potassium, a necessary electrolyte, facilitates nerve impulse conduction and the contraction of skeletal and smooth muscles, including the heart. It also facilitates cell membrane function and proper enzyme activity. Levels must be kept in a proper (homeostatic) balance for the maintenance of health.....Hypokalemia is most commonly caused by the use of diuretics. Diuretics are drugs that increase the excretion of water and salts in the urine. Diuretics are used to treat a number of medical conditions, including .... kidney disease. (So, treating the kidney disease caused this one? Nice.) Mild hypokalemia usually results in no symptoms, while moderate hypokalemia results in confusion, disorientation, weakness, and discomfort of muscles. (Which would look exactly like a person with AD who fell recently.) Other sites spell the last disease a little differently than his chart, but I'm guessing it's the same thing. Hypomagnesemia seems to be simply a lack of magnesium in the blood. (which I probably could have figured out from the name). I had to go to Wikipedia as I couldn't understand the heavy science content of the other articles on this. Again, it seems to be caused by the treatment for the kidney failure. The home is supposed to take him to a medical doctor tomorrow. Hopefully all of this will be addressed.
Kidney failure I know. But no one ever said "Bob's kidneys are failing." Isn't that kind of, well, IMPORTANT?
WebMD says: Acute renal failuremeans that your kidneys have suddenly stopped working. Normally, the kidneys filter wastes and help balance water, salt, and mineral (electrolyte) levels in the blood. When your kidneys stop working, waste products, fluids, and electrolytes build up in your body. This can cause life-threatening problems.....Acute renal failure has three main causes:A sudden serious drop in blood flow to the kidneys....(doesn't seem applicable to my dad).... Damage to the kidneys. Certain medicines, poisons, or infection can damage the kidneys(, including) antibiotics.....(and) common pain medicines ....such as aspirin and ibuprofen (he does take aspirin for his heart. Not sure if they gave him any pain meds.) and lastly, A sudden blockagethat prevents urine from flowing out of the kidneys. Kidney stones, a tumor, an injury, or an enlarged prostate gland can cause a blockage. (My dad hasn't had kidney stones in years, but he does have an enlarged prostate.)
So is it being treated or what? Could it be a result of 4 days without proper food or water? Will it get better? Is anyone going to tell me any of this?
Now onto the next one, from an online medical encyclopedia:
Rhabdomyolysis is the breakdown of muscle fibers resulting in the release of muscle fiber contents (myoglobin) into the bloodstream. Some of these are harmful to the kidney and frequently result in kidney damage....The disorder may be caused by any condition that results in damage to skeletal muscle, especially trauma. (Oh, you mean, like being left alone and falling?)
(From health a to z ): Hypokalemia is a condition of below normal levels of potassium in the blood serum. Potassium, a necessary electrolyte, facilitates nerve impulse conduction and the contraction of skeletal and smooth muscles, including the heart. It also facilitates cell membrane function and proper enzyme activity. Levels must be kept in a proper (homeostatic) balance for the maintenance of health.....Hypokalemia is most commonly caused by the use of diuretics. Diuretics are drugs that increase the excretion of water and salts in the urine. Diuretics are used to treat a number of medical conditions, including .... kidney disease. (So, treating the kidney disease caused this one? Nice.) Mild hypokalemia usually results in no symptoms, while moderate hypokalemia results in confusion, disorientation, weakness, and discomfort of muscles. (Which would look exactly like a person with AD who fell recently.)
Other sites spell the last disease a little differently than his chart, but I'm guessing it's the same thing. Hypomagnesemia seems to be simply a lack of magnesium in the blood. (which I probably could have figured out from the name). I had to go to Wikipedia as I couldn't understand the heavy science content of the other articles on this.
Again, it seems to be caused by the treatment for the kidney failure.
The home is supposed to take him to a medical doctor tomorrow. Hopefully all of this will be addressed.