Can some one clear this up for me please? (question)

[Shaymon]

Hello IHD,

The sun is shinning the sky is blue and its another warm bright day here in winter UK................not really but it got your attention. It's really cold and damp and I didn't want to get up today (long day at work yesterday).

Any way i got a report from my Neph yesterday that gave me all my results Cret= 566 Pot = 4.3 Blood = 11.0  and Gfr = 9.9 BP = 81/140. He stated that I was still CKD stage 4. This is the bit that confuses me. On lots of kidney sites on the web GfR >15 is stage 5 but my neph says that I'm still stage 4.

So the question is what else or other circumstances differentials between stages 4 & 5 CKD? I did post on my intro ' I have polycystic kidney disease and am  now at stage 5 CKD with a gfr of 9.9. which means that dialysis is just round the corner for me'  :oops;so if this is wrong then sorry for an inaccurate post.

Thanks in advance for your wise words

Yours

Shaymon

[RichardMEL]

Just my opinion not fact but...

Some doctors will take an overall view of a patients situation rather than jump on a "trigger" number and say "OK you're stage 5" or "you need to start D" or whatever. It can also come down to how you feel and how you are coping with where your labs are at. Potassium is fine for example, the creat is high but it's certainly not massive (I was ~1000 while on D). and it may just be that your neph is taking an overall view of your situation rather than just looking at the eGFR or creat and making a judgement.

The main thing I would ask you is how do you feel generally? OK tired I am sure, but any nausea? other signs of ESRD? Therse things can make a real difference.

My doc did not start me on dialysis until I had a GFR of 6.

Everyone is different.

Did you ask the doc why he suggested CKD 4 given your GFR of 10?

[Shaymon]

RichardMel

Thanks for your reply. In myself I'm feeling OK. I do have a lot of nausea and its been going on for some time and also baffling the Neph as to why. Otherwise I don't really feel unwell. so i see the sense of your reply. As with all these things we are all human and so therefore different. I suppose i was taking the the definition far too literally.

I don't want to start Dialysis as I know once I start that's it for life or transplant but I know as each day goes by it becomes closer.

Thanks again and bye for now.

Shaymon

[del]

The nausea is probably caused by the kidney failure!! 

[RichardMEL]

Yep, as the toxins build up in your system and your kidneys are getting worse and worse at clearing them (ie: your creat goes up and your gfr goes down) then that will, for some people anyway, cause nausea as one of the more common symtpoms. I'm surprised the neph seems "puzzled" by that with your numbers.