Kidney Treatments

 

 

Kidney Treatments

• Antibiotics: Kidney infections caused by bacteria are treated with antibiotics. Often, cultures of the blood or urine can help guide the choice of antibiotic therapy.
• Nephrostomy: A tube (catheter) is placed through the skin into the kidney. Urine then drains directly from the kidney, bypassing any blockages in urine flow.
• Lithotripsy: Some kidney stones may be shattered into small pieces that can pass in the urine. Most often, lithotripsy is done by a machine that projects ultrasound shock waves through the body.
• Nephrectomy: Surgery to remove a kidney. Nephrectomy is performed for kidney cancer or severe kidney damage.
• Dialysis: Artificial filtering of the blood to replace the lost function of damaged kidneys. Hemodialysis is the most common method of dialysis in the U.S.
• Hemodialysis: A person with complete kidney failure is connected to a dialysis machine, which filters the blood and returns it to the body. Hemodialysis is typically done three days per week in people with ESRD.
• Peritoneal dialysis: Placing large amounts of a special fluid in the abdomen through a catheter, allows the body to filter the blood using the natural membrane lining the abdomen. After a while the fluid with the waste is drained and discarded.
• Kidney transplant: Transplanting a kidney into a person with ESRD can restore kidney function. A kidney may be transplanted from a living donor, or a recently deceased organ donor.