Kidney problems and blood pressure

[Edcat]

Hi everyone, I'm new here,

Just diagnosed with BPH and urine retention was admitted to hospital as an emergency in order to be drained, awaiting TURP on 8th January 2020.

Blood pressure was very high prior to draining also had swollen ankles now BP is excellent and swollen ankles are back to normal.

A year ago my eGFR was 85 but in early November 2019 when my urine retention was found the eGFR was 54 and creatinine was 120.

The consultant has said the he expects an improvement in both numbers after the TURP but it was the Blood pressure readings which fell drastically from 148/100 to 116/77 after the bladder was drained which amazed me.

Hope this info helps someone.

Best wishes to all

[orangecity41]

I have BPH and had green light laser surgery years ago. Keep monitoring your eGFR results.

[Edcat in reply to orangecity41]

Thanks orangecity41, I will do.

Best wishes

[HealthBuddyMelissa]

I am not a man but I do get urinary retention. I think that is partially what caused my kidney to fail but doctor brushes it off. I make sure I sit and empty my bladder all the way at least every other day. It makes a huge difference

[Irelandy in reply to HealthBuddyMelissa]

Hi, I too found out that I have urinary retention. It got so bad that I had to start self catheterisation. I think you may be right and that may have damaged my kidneys and led to CKD.

Now my egfr is around 20 and holding.

Thanks for your post.😃

[Edcat in reply to Irelandy]

Hi Irelandy,

I think that I may be going down the same route as you with self catheterisation if the TURP is not successful. I must admit I am not looking forward to it !

The specialist explained that the urine retention caused the very high blood pressure which in turn caused the damage to the kidneys but as of now since draining BP is excellent. The downside is that my bladder had been extended for a while and may have lost its ability to "squeeze".

Really hope that all works out well for you and that your egfr holds or improves, let us know how things go.

Best wishes

[Irelandy in reply to Edcat]

Yes Edcat, that happened to my bladder. I was very squemish about the catheter but it's painless and easy to use, you just have to be careful about UTIs. The big advantage is if you're going out you can empty the bladder before leaving and you are guaranteed 3-4 hours without needing to urinate.

Good luck and best wishes for the new year.

[Edcat in reply to Irelandy]

Hi Irelandy,

Thank you so much, you have put my mind at rest a bit! I was just dreading the thought of self catheterising, how often do you empty your bladder or is it dependant on how much you drink?

Silly question I know but like you I am very squeamish and its great to chat to someone who has actually done it.

How long has your egfr been 20? Only a friend had an efgr of 17 and now a year later it is 34, but he is very careful about what he eats.

Really good to chat and best wishes for the New Year to you my friend.

[Irelandy in reply to Irelandy]

Very interesting what you said about the relationship between urinary retention, BP, and CKD. The urologist knew about my retention about 8 years ago and did nothing...3 years ago I was told I had CKD but when I asked for my medical records I could see they knew about it in 2011!

Over the years I had been experiencing progressive difficulty in peeing, then it all but stopped and that was when I was introduced to self catheterisation last Match.

I do it a out 4/5 times daily.

It freaked me out at first but it quickly became routine!

[Edcat in reply to Irelandy]

I was admitted as an emergency case because I had severe retention (2 litres) which was found by a routine ultrasound but no symptoms other than a lowering eFGR. It was only when I went via private medical that the urologist explained the connection between urine retention, BP and CKD.

Apparently the retention has a very detrimental effect on the kidneys as they can't clear the toxins and hence the BP rises.

How is your BP? Mine has gone from sky high before draining to excellent now.

I am still having a problem getting my head around self catheterising, silly isn't it?

Best wishes

[Irelandy in reply to Edcat]

Thanks Edcat,

It makes total sense to me if you can't empty the bladder then where do those toxins go?

My blood pressure had been very high and yet my doctor took years before putting me on meds. That only happened after I got a private blood test which found the CKD.

Now I'm on meds and it's fine.

Don't worry about the self catheterisation.... it is more psychological and not painful.

Good luck with your health and thanks again for your post.

All the best, Andy.

[Edcat in reply to Irelandy]

Thanks Andy,

Really pleased everything is working out for you and thanks for your help.

Best wishes

John

[AnneEG in reply to Edcat]

What is a TURP please?

[Edcat in reply to AnneEG]

Hi Aeg47,

Got this from the net...

The most common surgery for BPH is called transurethral resection of the prostate or TURP. During the procedure, surgeons remove the excess prostate tissue through the urethra. ... A doctor who specializes in the urinary tract does most TURP surgeries. TURP is considered a fairly safe, effective procedure for treating BPH.

Hope this helps and best wishes.

[Edcat in reply to HealthBuddyMelissa]

Hi HealthBuddyMelissa,

It seems that urinary retention for whatever reason seems to go unnoticed until there are big problems, I had no idea that I had retention until an ultrasound found it.

I wouldn't know what the symptoms of mild retention are even now unfortunately.

Thank you for your reply.

[HealthBuddyMelissa in reply to Edcat]

It seems a lot that has to do with the kidneys and urinary system gets ignored or overlooked until too late. It is very sad.

[Edcat in reply to HealthBuddyMelissa]

The problem seems to be that no symptoms which we regard as serious are any indication of fluid retention until it gets to a very serious stage.

I carried over 2 litres for quite a period and yet had no "serious" symptoms and yet as soon as it was found on ultrasound whilst looking for a hernia it was regarded as an emergency and I was rushed to hospital.

Has anyone any idea what symptoms of mild urine retention are?

Many thanks and a Happy New Year to everyone