Renal Tubular Acidosis

Renal Tubular Acidosis – General Information

Renal Tubular Acidosis – Symptoms

Renal Tubular Acidosis – Treatment

Generally, the patient’s kidney removes substances such as acid from his blood and excretes them through the urine. The treatment for this kind of condition differs depending on the type of acidosis the patient is suffering from. The main cause of classic distal RTA is the low levels of potassium in the patient’s bloodstream, which is usually caused when the kidney excrete potassium into urine instead of bringing him to the blood supply. Potassium is responsible for nerve and muscle health and heart rate, and these low levels can also cause the appearance of other more severe conditions such as extreme weakness, cardiac arrhythmias, paralysis, and, in rare cases, even the death of the individual. There are cases in which if this type of Renal Tubular Acidosis is not treated properly, it can cause growth retardation in young patients and progressive renal and bone disease in older patients. Usually, the main goal in treating this type of condition is to restore the normal growth and prevent kidney stones. Some doctors can treat the condition with sodium bicarbonate or sodium citrate, which can also correct the low blood potassium, salt depletion and calcium leakage into urine. In some cases, doctors can apply alkali therapies which can decrease the kidney stones development in time. If the condition does not progress to advanced stages, doctors can prescribe potassium supplements, especially in young patients.

The proximal type of Renal Tubular Acidosis can appear in patients who have been treated with ifosfamide, a medicine which is usually used in chemotherapies. There are also cases in which the condition has been triggered by other drugs such as acetazolamide or outdated tetracycline. In older patients the condition can cause complications such as multiple myeloma, or can appear in patients who experience chronic rejection of a transplanted kidney. If Renal Tubular Acidosis affects young patients, it can cause slow growth, anorexia, and they may experience vomiting, constipation and soft bones that ought to be treated carefully. In most cases, identifying and correcting the main causes of this type of Renal Tubular Acidosis are considered crucial steps in treating it. Doctors can diagnose the condition by doing chemical analysis of blood and urine samples. Usually, young patients who suffer from this type of condition take large doses of alkali, including sodium bicarbonate and potassium citrate, drugs that can also be effective in preventing bone disorders, kidney stones and growth failure. There are some cases in which doctors can prescribe vitamin D supplements, needed to help prevent bone disorders. The hyperkalemic type of Renal Tubular Acidosis can be caused by sickle cell disease, urinary tract obstruction, lupus, amyloidosis, or certain transplantations. The most common drug used to treat this type of condition is the aldosterone, but there are many cases in which doctors prescribed other medicines which can include diuretics, used to treat heart failure, and can be prescribed as spironolactone or eplerenone, blood pressure medicines also known as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), and antibiotics such as trimethoprim.