Curious...

[GeeMoney]

I've had CKD for just over a year now. I'm wondering if anyone can who has been dealing with CKD for a longer time if you see any fluctuations seasonally with their GFR over a period of years? I'm referring to winter compared to summer etc and different levels of activity etc. Thanks in advance.

[chicablue]

for several years mine got a bit worse in the winter and better in the summer. i'm in Texas where summers are hot. I chalked it up to eating less in summer.

[GeeMoney in reply to chicablue]

Interesting...

[Blackknight1989]

As I have posted many times before, after 26 years with CKD I have seen my kidney blood levels fluctuate often. My “trigger” is my weight and blood pressure. If my weight gets much higher than 200lbs or BP stays consistently over 120/80 my levels tank. After going untreated for over a year in December of 2020 my eGFR and creatinine were 13 and 3.9/4.0 BP 165/95 weight 230. Got back on lisinopril and worked on weight by October 2021 eGFR 22 and creatinine 2.95/3 BP 114/72 weight 198. Those are my last readings and they were taken post-COVID infection that caused me COVID pneumonia and a month of touch and go deciding if I might succumb to the pneumonia. Since then I had COVID again, a much milder case, so I am nervous about numbers in April.

I have had several orthopedic surgeries since the CKD/AKI diagnosis in 1996. Those really cause numbers to tank, like eGFR of 10 and creatinine as high as 5.5. After my last in 2014 doc prescribed Warfarin and that caused a near disaster that caused my family to rush me to docs with near kidney failure and eGFR of 8 creatinine of 7.7. However, after all these years I remain lucky with my eGFR always coming back to the 20-24 level and creatinine 2.5-3. Yet, as I age I suffer more kidney issues most probably due to age. As I am sure all know, our bodies wear out and it is much harder at 55 for levels to recover than at 35. So for me BP is harder to control as is my weight.

So my BP and weight are the biggest factors in my CKD find yours and keep them in check!

[GeeMoney in reply to Blackknight1989]

Thanks for all the info. Very interesting indeed.

[oceansplash]

Hi GeeMoney,I was only diagnosed a year and a half ago but I definitely noticed summer improved my gfr 8 pts. I spent a lot of time in the pool last summer and my vitamin d level increased to 65! I think that the vit. d and the hot sun contributed to the increase in gfr. I've read that your kidneys like being warm, maybe it increases circulation or something. Because my back hurts a lot I also use a heating pad all the time when I sit and work. That said, I'm also thinking that kidney's don't like ice water either -- something I love but haven't given up yet. Haven't read up on that yet though.

[GeeMoney in reply to oceansplash]

Sounds like the results I'm seeing. My GFR has dropped a few points again this winter, as it did last, and I'm wondering if it's a trend. You make some valid points about the vitamin D etc. Thanks for the feedback.