Nephrology

Kidney stones: Know the signs

Have you ever had a kidney stone? If your answer is yes, then you know the pain that sends more than half a million people to emergency rooms every year. And you are far from alone—1 in 10 people will get a kidney stone at some point in their lives. Here's what you need to know about kidney stones, the symptoms you should look out for, and what you can do to prevent them. Kidney stones are hard, tiny objects that develop in the kidneys. Your urine contains a variety of waste chemicals, whi...

Watson Clinic Leads in Kidney Transplants & Home Dialysis

Close to 800,000 people in the United States struggle with end-stage kidney failure. These patients are faced with two options if they want to survive: dependence on routine dialysis therapy or a kidney transplant. Providing swift, effective care for these patients has proven challenging in medical establishments across the county. Patients often find discouragement when they attempt to secure their placement on impossibly long lists of kidney transplant candidates. Meanwhile, dialysis treatment...

Nephrologists Also Treat High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure is the most common medical condition in the United States and is also a leading risk factor for heart attack, stroke and kidney disease. Your kidneys play a crucial role in regulating your blood pressure. That's why Watson Clinic’s kidney specialists, otherwise known as nephrologists , are also experts in the treatment of high blood pressure. One way to avoid or slow the progression of kidney disease is to keep your high blood pressure hypertension under control within ...

How To Keep Your Kidneys Going Strong

Your kidneys are filtration workhorses. Each of these bean-shaped organs contains around 1 million tiny filters that sift through about 30 gallons of blood every day. It's up to your kidneys to filter out the waste and excess substances from your blood that you don't need while holding on to the nutrients and water that you do. It's a full-time job, so it's little wonder that everyone's kidneys work a little less well with age. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, up to 3...

Addressing Kidney Disease by Dr. Steven G. Achinger

On July 10, 2019, the White House through an executive order laid out several goals related to something near and dear to my heart: kidney disease. It is not often that my medical specialty is clearly focused in the limelight, but I think this is long overdue. There is an ever growing population of Americans now over 700,000 who are dependent on dialysis therapy to stay alive as a result of developing end-stage kidney failure. This population is often hidden from our view even though there are m...

Understanding Chronic Kidney Disease

It is estimated that 1 in every 7 American adults are afflicted with Chronic Kidney Disease CKD . Often referred to as the silent disease due to its initial lack of noticeable symptoms, the disease has a higher mortality rate than breast or prostate cancer. In light of this, it’s crucial that patients understand the risk factors, symptoms and available treatments that can help combat this dreaded disease. CKD occurs when kidneys are restricted in their ability to clean the blood of harmful...