Heart problem is the dangerous complications of Polycystic Kidney Disease
(PKD). A majority of patients with PKD are dying from heart disease instead of
primary kidney problems. Due to such a high risk, PKD patients should be alarm
to their heart problems.
How do polycystic kidneys affect heart disease?
Apart from removing wastes and fluids from your body, your kidneys perform
other important jobs, including regulate the liquid and other chemicals in your
blood, such as sodium, potassium, phosphorus and calcium, as well as release
hormones into your blood to regulate blood pressure.
As renal cysts grow up in your kidneys, they will surely oppress the normal
renal tissue and cells, causing renal dysfunctions. When kidneys can not
function normally, they will fail to regulate blood volume, causing a series of
heart problem, such as heart stroke, heart failure etc.
Meantime, polycystic kidneys can also lead to high blood pressure which is
also can overload the heart and case ventricular hypertrophy and heart
enlargement.
What should I do with the hear problems related to polycystic kidney
disease?
● Early detection can help prevent the progression of PKD to kidney failure.
Learn about your GFR, which is an estimate of how well your kidneys work. GFR
contributes to indicate your kidney function and help get early treatment to
protect your kidneys and heart at the same time.
● Control your blood pressure. High blood pressure is common secondary
disease based on PKD. Controlling blood pressure can reduce the burden to your
heart, reducing the risk to develop into heart problem.
● As heart problem results from the kidney dysfunctions, the key to control
heart disease should aim at renal cysts on your kidneys. The complete treatment
for PKD should achieve a conjunctive goal of restricting renal cysts growing,
shrinking renal cysts and repairing impaired kidneys.
Many patients with PKD pass away with severe heart problems, before their
kidney disease step into the end stage. If anyone with PKD has the symptoms of
difficult breath, racing heart at random, you need to talk with your doctors or
mail to kidney-treatment@hotmail.com, to discuss whether your are affected by heart
problem.
