Coping with Kidney Disease: A 12-Step Treatment Program to Help You Avoid Dialysis

by Mackenzie Walser, Betsy Thorpe

Overview

A revolutionary program that can indefinitely postpone the need for dialysis

If you've been diagnosed with kidney failure, this book could save your life. If you suffer from diabetes, hypertension, obesity, or any of a host of conditions that put you at risk for kidney disease, you owe it to yourself to read what is in this book. If you are among the 60,000 North Americans who go on dialysis each year, the information in this book could substantially improve your quality of life.

In Coping with Kidney Disease, a leading expert tells you, in plain English, what you need to know to:
* Understand kidney failure
* Recognize early warning signs of kidney failure
* Get a proper diagnosis
* Talk with your doctors about it
* Confidently evaluate treatment options
* Take charge of your treatment
* Delay dialysis or even avoid the need for it altogether


The centerpiece of Coping with Kidney Disease is Dr. Walser's revolutionary 12-step program for avoiding dialysis. Based on treatments he has pioneered with his own patients at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the program calls for a supplemented low-protein diet supported by treatments to control blood pressure and correct high cholesterol. So effective has this breakthrough strategy proven to be that in many patients it actually worked to slow or arrest the progression of kidney failure to the end stage.

Knowledge is power. Coping with Kidney Disease empowers you with what you need to take charge of kidney disease.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780471274230
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	04/12/2004
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	300,145
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Mackenzie Walser, M.D., is Professor of Pharmacology and Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Betsy Thorpe is the coauthor of Carol Guber’s Type 2 Diabetes Life Plan.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction 1

Terms, Measures, and Abbreviations 5

Part I: Looking at the Disease of Kidney Failure

1 What Do Kidneys Do and What Happens When They Fail? 9

2 Are You at Risk for Kidney Failure? 17

3 Symptoms of Kidney Failure 27

Part II: How to Treat Kidney Failure

4 Treating Kidney Failure 35

5 Step 1: Assess Your Current Treatment Plan 44

6 Step 2: Make Lifestyle Changes 52

7 Step 3: Follow a Low-Protein Diet 55

8 Step 4: Treat Salt and Water Problems 88

9 Step 5: Regulate Your Blood Pressure 96

10 Step 6: Treat Acidosis 106

11 Step 7: Treat Anemia and Iron Deficiency 109

12 Step 8: Treat Potassium Problems 112

13 Step 9: Treat Calcium and Phosphate Problems 117

14 Step 10: Treat Gout and Uric Acid Problems 122

15 Step 11: Treat Your High Cholesterol 126

16 Step 12: Know the Medications That Slow the Progression of Renal Failure 130

Part III: Tracking Kidney Failure, Dialysis, Transplants, and More

17 Keeping Close Watch on Your Kidney Failure 139

18 Dietary Treatment of the Nephrotic Syndrome 158

19 Safe and Unsafe Medications for Patients with Kidney Failure 163

20 Transplantation as an Alternative to Dialysis 167

21 When to Opt for Dialysis 172

22 Patients Who Have Avoided Dialysis 180

Appendix 1: Resources for Kidney Patients 197

Appendix 2: Government Support of Low-Protein Diets 201

Notes 205

Glossary 213

Index 223

Editorial Reviews

Fans of Frances Mayes's Under the Tuscan Sun will enjoy this fish-out-of-water story of a sudden homeowner in a strange land. This time it's a food writer from New York City who follows the whim of her husband in buying a broken-down ranch in Colorado to use as their summer home. Despite what she describes as serious misgivings, she goes along with her husband's idea of living close to the land. Initially, Bone packs in excessive quantities of expensive imported food fancy olive oil, Italian salami so that her family can eat in their usual way. But as she gradually tries more locally produced items and begins to hunt and grow her own food, she develops a strong connection to her new home and its people: "I have come to love this place, for its restorative powers, its beauty, and what it has taught me about living." But this is not just a memoir; Bone includes more than 100 recipes that use local meat and produce, and many dishes are adapted from old favorites, such as Elk Stroganoff or Macaroni and Cheese garnished with onion grass instead of chives. The satisfying story and delicious recipes will appeal to a variety of readers. Recommended for most public libraries. Julie James, Forsyth Cty. P.L., NC Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Drawing on his work treating hundreds of adult kidney disease patients at his institution's Clinical Research Center, Walser (pharmacology & medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine) aims to assist readers in understanding kidney failure, a condition that can be caused by diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. Many of his points—e.g., how to recognize the early warning signs, get a correct diagnosis, and evaluate treatment options-are illustrated by the stories of real patients. Walser also presents a low protein diet as the center of his J 2-step treatment to help kidney disease patients avoid dialysis. Despite the use of patient stories and sample menus for the low protein diet, this book will not suit consumers owing to the prevalent medical jargon. The National Kidney Foundation offers more accessible and useful information on its web site, www.kidney.org. Not recommended.  —Marge Kars Bronson. Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo, MI (Library Journal , May 1, 2004)

From the Publisher