Acute Renal Failure Symptoms

Acute Renal Failure: Introduction

In acute renal failure (ARF), there is a rapid breakdown occurring in your kidney functions. This serious condition is mostly caused due to severe underlying health conditions (long term) such as diabetes or high blood pressure.

This grave condition can strike quite suddenly as your kidneys can stop functioning either partially or completely within a very short span of time.

What are Acute Renal Failure Symptoms?

Your kidneys perform the vital task of filtering toxic body waste. It also maintains healthy electrolyte levels in your blood. If your kidneys malfunction, the waste products of your body start to accumulate (including waste fluids and body electrolytes).

This can over a period of time create a life threatening situation. Signs of ARF can also be seen when there is an increase in heart rate. Surprisingly, similar changes in your pulse rate are very hard to notice (as it weakens). Here are some of the acute renal failure signs and symptoms;

• Easy bruising
• Breath odor
• Blood in stools
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Loss of appetite
• Numbness in hands or feet
• Feeling tiredness
• Flank pain
• Shaking of hands (tremor)
• Seizures
• Hypertension
• Altered mood or mental status
• Mental confusion
• Feeling of metallic taste (mouth)
• Bleeding nose
• Easy bleeding
• Movements get sluggish
• Swelling in foot, ankle, leg
• Less urine output
• Urination frequent at night

Other signs include stomach disorders, as you may feel nauseous upon improper working of kidneys. Vomiting and diarrhea can follow and this can lead to dehydration.

In most cases, the patient receives medical treatment in time and avoids such severity. This is true for patients getting admitted to a hospital, and symptoms of acute renal failure have been identified.

In case the patient suffers seizures or goes into a state of coma or the lungs fill with fluids then these are prominent indications for ARF. Such severe acute renal failure symptoms can lead to further health complications, and require immediate hospitalization.