One of the main functions of the healthy kidneys is to prevent the proteins in the blood stream from draining out with the urine. It is therefore that doctors often suspect it to be a kidney problem or a disease when the protein amount within the urine has increased.
What Is a Leaking Kidney?
A malfunctioned or an inflammation of kidney results in a leaking kidney. Sometimes mild proteinuria is common and can be a normal circumstance. While the healthy kidneys does not allow excess amount of protein to filter out, a damaged kidney or a kidney with damaged filters due to any disease often cause a leak in proteins from the blood vessels.
The protein then flows out of the body with the urine. The condition of a leaking kidney is termed as proteinuria. Proteinuria is defined as a condition in which the urine contains an abnormal amount of protein. Proteinuria is often the first symptom of a deadly kidney disease. Whether you are suffering from proteinuria can be discovered when you do your urine test. A blood test shall follow to learn the well-being and the functionality of your kidneys.
What Are The Risk Factors For Proteinuria or A Leaking Kidney?
Two of the most common risk factors for proteinuria or a leaking kidney is:
- High blood pressure (B.P) or hypertension
- Diabetes.
Both of the above mention illnesses lead to a high rate of kidney damage which then causes proteinuria.
There are also several other kidney diseases which results in excess amount of protein leaking into the urine. Some of the types of kidney diseases which lead to proteinuria are:
- Trauma
- High level of toxins within the kidneys which the kidneys fail to filter out
- Infections in the kidneys
- Disorders of the immune system
- Medications and their side effects
- Obesity
- Old age, age especially above 65 years
- If there is a family history of kidney diseases
High blood pressure and increased amount of protein in the urine during pregnancy, also known as preeclampsia
Ethnicity and race can even be a factor for proteinuria. High blood pressure is very common in African-Americans, native Americans, Hispanics and Pacific Islanders compared to white people. Therefore people of the above mentioned ethnicity are more prone to proteinuria.
It is sometimes seen that if the body starts to produce more amount of protein, then proteinuria is often the result. Increased protein productions in case of multiple myeloma and amyloidosis lead to proteinuria.
Why Do You Need To Treat A Leaking Kidney and How?
Treatment of a leaking kidney or proteinuria is very important since it is often the first symptom for renal failure:
Diabetic Nephropathy: Any kind of kidney disease caused due to diabetes is termed as diabetic nephropathy. The first symptom of this disease is high amount of protein in urine.
Glomerular Disease: A broad category of several kinds of disease which surround and affect the glomeruli is known as glomerular disease. The first symptom is proteinuria.
Minimal Change Disease: Minimal change disease or glomerular nephritis through which young children can be identified since the first symptom is proteinuria.
Kidney Defects: A condition of leaking kidney can also be caused due to congenital kidney defects since birth.
Even though a condition of mild proteinuria is very normal, if proteinuria stops to show when the person is lying down, the state is known as orthostatic proteinuria. This also needs attentions since about 2 to 5 percent of teenagers suffer from orthostatic or postural proteinuria.
To treat the above diseases medications like Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers or ARBs are often prescribed by the doctors. For a proper treatment of a patient suffering from proteinuria when he or she is also diabetic or has high blood pressure, the reason for constant and progressive kidney damage has to be brought in check.
- Mayo Clinic Staff. (2021). Protein in Urine (Proteinuria). Mayo Clinic. Link
