Renal Failure with Dialysis Essay

The paper “Renal Failure with Dialysis” is a delightful example of an essay on nursing. Renal failure (RF) is a prevalent chronic disease that inflicts an enormous burden on the healthcare system not only in the United States but also in other developed and developing countries across the world (Matavinovic, 2009, p. 1).Renal Failure with Dialysis Essay RF is a condition in which “the kidneys fail to remove metabolic end-products from the bloodstream and regulate the fluid, electrolyte, and pH balance of the extracellular fluids” (Huether & McCance, 2012, p. 433). The underlying cause of RF, according to these authors, is closely related to renal illness, systematic illness, or urologic faults that have no renal bearing. The stages of progression of RF include a diminished renal reserve, renal insufficiency, renal failure, and end-stage renal disease. RF can occur as an acute or a chronic disorder, with available nursing scholarship demonstrating that acute RF is abrupt in onset and often is reversible if identified early and managed appropriately, while chronic RF is the end result of irreparable damage to the kidneys which develops slowly over the course of a number of years (Hinkle & Cheever, 2013, p. 1275-1278; Huether & McCance, 2012, p. 433). RF with dialysis qualifies as a chronic RF. The clinical manifestations of RF include “alterations in water, electrolyte, and acid-base balance; mineral and skeletal disorders; anemia and coagulation disorders; hypertension and alterations in cardiovascular function; gastrointestinal disorders; neurologic complications; disorders of skin integrity; and immunologic disorders” (Huether & McCance, 2012, p. 438).Renal Failure with Dialysis Essay The pathophysiology of RF can be explained in four stages, namely (1) rate of renal blood flow to the tissue becomes higher than that of other well perfused vascular beds such as heart, liver, and brain, (2) glomerular capillaries become vulnerable to hemodynamic injury due to the high intra- and transglomerular pressure, (3) glomerular filtration becomes exposed to negatively charged molecules which serve as a barrier in retarding anionic macromolecules, and (4) the sequential organization of nephron’s microvasculature and the downstream position of the tubuli with respect to glomeruli, not only maintains the glomerulotubular balance but also promotes the dispersion of glomerular injury to tubulointerstitial compartment in disease, exposing tubular epithelial cells to uncharacteristic ultrafiltrate.