How to Diagnose Kidney Disease

Kidney disease manifests itself with a variety of different symptoms, many of which are similar to symptoms of other conditions. For this reason, it is important to have an understanding of how to diagnose kidney disease and differentiate it from other illnesses. Read on to learn how to diagnose kidney disease.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Stethoscope
• Arm cuff with pressure gauge and hand bulb pump

Check Your Blood Pressure to Diagnose Kidney Disease

1. Fasten the arm cuff around either arm. It should be placed above your elbow.
2. Set the stethoscope against your arm near the bottom of the cuff.
3. Pump the hand bulb so that the cuff inflates and temporarily stops the flow of blood to your hand.
4. Listen to the stethoscope. When you can't hear the pulse, the pressure gauge should be at a peak. Remember this number, it is called your diastolic pressure.
5. Release the pressure from the arm cuff. The reading on the pressure gauge when your heartbeat is first heard through the stethoscope again is called the systolic pressure.
6. Write down the diastolic pressure over the systolic pressure. This is your blood pressure. A reading greater than 140 over 90 is high and could mean you have kidney problems.

Learn Other Ways to Diagnose Kidney Disease

7. Check for changes in your urine. If it is dark, bubbly or foamy you could have problems with your kidneys. You may also notice that you frequently have the urge to urinate but are unable to do so.
8. Have a doctor take a sample from your kidney. A small needle will be inserted into your back and into one of your kidneys. If the doctor examines the sample under a microscope, he will be able to see if you have any abnormal growths on your kidney.
9. Notice if you are often out of breath. Kidney disease causes a buildup of fluid in the lungs, which could make you out of breath even if you are just lying in bed.
10. Eat foods that you love and know the taste of them very well. If the foods taste strange or metallic, you might have kidney problems. You might also have constant bad breath as a result of kidney disease.
11. See if your sleeping habits have changed. Kidney disease will make you anemic which makes you very tired all of the time.

Tips & Warnings

• It might require several different tests to firmly diagnose kidney disease. At least two tests should be done so that other conditions can be ruled out.
• You can do some home-based tests, like checking blood pressure, but a doctor should perform more complicated tests in the office.