Dad's kidney function is reduced to 40%, but doctor's not sure why...

[LilRedWG]

My Dad's kidney function is at 40% but a scan showed nothing and he's to go back in three months. What could be causing it?

My Dad is 76 - do I just need to accept that he is getting old? I really don't want to. I've told him that he can have one of mine if he needs it, but DH said there is no way the doctors will take a kidney from a healthy young woman and give it to an old man. Feel sad.

Sorry to hear about this.

Is he on any medication? There are lots of medications that can affect kidney function, especially if you are not constantly hydrated.

I'm sorry to hear that, I know it is a really worrying thing to be told as MIL has similar, and they think it is to do with some repeat infections she had many years ago, plus, sorry, just getting older.

Has your dad had any advice about diet and salt? I know MIL has to be very careful now about salt, and that even LoSalt isn't OK for her.

Apart from that she is getting along fine, and we were told that as long as her kidney function doesn't change too much then it's just going to be about watching her diet.

My Dad doesn't like to talk about his health much, he is intensely private, but I do know he is on statins to slow hardening of the arteries and a couple of other things - but not sure what.

The poor old bugger is gradually packing up and it makes me so sad. If his abdominal aorta grows by 4mm of more he will have to have a stent fitted and he has arthritis in his back and his legs hurt and stop him from walking too far. But, in the past ten years he has had his appendix removed and also overcome cancer of the throat.

I guess I just don't want to accept that he is getting old. He's my hero.

Thanks for listening.

My dad is my hero too.

It's hard to try and talk to people when they are so private. Getting info out of my dad is like getting blood out of a stone, which I'm guessing is the same with your dad.

Maybe if you sat down with him and try and squeeze out of him what is going on you will be able to make him see that you are there to help and listen.

at 76, few people have a kidney function is more near where it was when younger. the kidney cannot repair or regenerate itself like the liver can which is why we have 2 kidneys and each one has a large in built redundancy of nephrons when born. as soon as they start filtering the nephrons start to get damaged and the filtering capacity of the kidneys will diminish over time. some lifestyles and environmental conditions will increase nephron death more than that of other people.
if all the usual problems have been ruled out, like kidney stone, UTI's, etc, then it may just be his age and toxin load over the years that have caught up with him. I have a kidney disease client now, blood pressure pills to open up the renal artery to get more blood flowing through and steroids for the accompanying and usual anaemia that goes with kidney disease, change of diet to remove from the diet as many food groups and food waste products that kidneys have to deal with, so lightening thier load. this is one site I have stored but there are many good sites around;

www.kidney.org.uk/Medical-Info/ckd-info/index.html

its not all doom and gloom, needs careful management though. have a google and see what you come up with?

Thank you both. I'll have a look at that site Misi.

Right - spoke to Dad yesterday. He has not been told to restrict his diet, but apparently the combination of medicines he is already taking is ideal for him - statins, high blood pressure tablets and asprin.