The mortality risk of kidney failure depends on
- The type of organ failure,
- The concomitant diseases and
- The therapy.
Nevertheless, both acute and chronic kidney failure is a life-threatening disease that is sometimes difficult to treat. In general, mortality is significantly increased even with slight impairment of renal function. With increasing restriction of renal function, the risk of mortality increases exponentially.
Mortality in acute renal failure
Acute kidney failure is associated with a mortality rate of up to 60%. The main reason for this is the often acutely life-threatening situation that caused the acute kidney failure. Thus, accident victims, patients after major operations or seriously ill patients of other kinds are often affected by this form of kidney failure. Nevertheless, there is a chance that the kidney function will recover if the patient is treated early and adequately and if the patient’s general condition is not too much affected. In some cases, however, after an initial improvement, kidney function may deteriorate again and become chronic kidney failure requiring dialysis.
Mortality in chronic kidney failure
Chronic kidney failure can always be accompanied by a shortened life expectancy. This is especially the case if the chronic kidney failure is caused by diabetes mellitus. In addition, many patients die as a result of chronic kidney failure.
These include cardiovascular diseases in particular, which are the most frequent cause of death in the context of chronic kidney failure. If both kidneys fail permanently, dialysis or transplantation is the only life-support option. Since a kidney transplantation is a complicated operation with numerous side effects and effects on the patient’s life, and since a donor organ is not available for all patients, kidney replacement therapy (dialysis) is a widely used procedure today.
In 2010, approximately 60,000 patients were treated with renal replacement therapy throughout Germany. However, kidney dialysis also brings with it numerous complications and can lead to life-threatening infections, which are the second most common cause of death. In addition, the general condition of a dialyzed patient can deteriorate significantly as a result of the therapy. However, in cases of permanently impaired renal function, renal atherapy is the only life-sustaining therapy and thus the only way to prevent the death of the affected patient.
- Cardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease (CHD),
- Vascular calcifications,
- Heart failure (cardiac insufficiency) or a
- Widening of the left ventricle (left ventricular hypertrophy).
