Kidney failure, chronic

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Definition

Chronic kidney failure is a gradual loss of your kidneys' filtering ability, usually due to high blood pressure or diabetes. When kidney function is seriously impaired, dangerous levels of fluid and waste can quickly accumulate in your body.

In the early stages of chronic kidney failure, you may have few signs or symptoms. Many people with chronic kidney failure don't realize they have a problem until their kidney function has decreased to less than 25 percent of normal.

The main goal of treatment of chronic kidney failure is to halt or delay progression of the disease, usually by controlling the underlying cause. Chronic kidney failure can progress to end-stage kidney disease, which is fatal without artificial filtering (dialysis) or a kidney transplant.

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Symptoms