"3 Things I have seen this week August #1: Dialysis"

"3 Things I have seen this week August #1: Dialysis"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD

Nothing gives a family more dread than when a doctor tells you that a loved one will have to go on Dialysis. The process by which blood is cleaned because the kidney has malfunctioned to a point that it can no longer do it for that patient. Most people have the notion that this signals the end and prepare for the worst eventuality. I am saddened to know that some of the people in my immediate family and workplace have undergone the process for various reasons.

1) Dialysis #1 - Leptospirosis - When my cousin Aljem posted something online about my Cousin Alvin I assumed that he was in some sort of accident and had to be operated on.

My brother informed that Alvin was being rushed to Manila to undergo dialysis because he had elevated creatinine Levels.

My Uncle Rey told me that he had been suspected to have Leptospirosis and might have been exposed near some falls.

Such a bad fate to fall on someone who is young , kind and hardworking. Get well soon cousin.

2) Engineer  , ESRD - One of the people I work with in my lectures is a retired Engineer who has proven to be jolly and gracious with his time with me. The few jokes we shared in the lectures as a springboard when things get too serious. 

We have not seen each other for almost a month and I was just attributing that to the rotating schedules of the facilitators in the schedules until I saw him with a covered fistula on his right arm. 

His creatine had risen and he was diagnosed with ESRD. I asked him if he wanted to just quit the work and just rest and he said , "Mas lalo akong mamatay kapag sa bahay lang doc."

I shook his hand. I knew I would have probably said the same thing if I was in his predicament.

3) Young Female ESRD - S - The last case was a cousin of my wife Stephanie. She was hospitalized for feeling week and was sadly diagnosed to have elevated creatinine as well. She is just 26 years old. Some of her family members blamed it on the excessive diet that their family had , eating way too much or not eating healthy enough. I did tell them that this maybe a factor but most likely this was not the cause and her Nephro did not give a specific cause as well.Regardless of the cause the end result is the same. She will still undergo dialysis. And it is troubling that patients are getting younger and younger now.