Kidney Disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is when the kidneys do not work as well as they should.

The main job of the kidneys is to filter the blood and remove waste and excess salt and water from your body.

In CKD, the kidneys slowly lose the ability to filter and clean the blood.

In time, the kidneys can stop working completely and it is very important to keep CKD from getting worse.

Symptoms:

• Feet, ankle, or leg swelling
• High blood pressure
• Fatigue or feeling very tired
• Bone damage

Protect kidneys

• Taking blood pressure and other medicines every day, if your doctor recommends them
• Controlling your blood sugar if you have diabetes
• Controlling your diet
• Quitting smoking
• Losing weight, if you are overweight
• Avoiding medicines known as "nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs," or NSAIDs. These include ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) and naproxen (Aleve).