Kidneys are a pair of bean shaped organs located at the upper and backside of the abdomen just under the ribs. Kidneys are the excretory organs of the body. A large amount of blood passes through the kidney every minute and harmful toxins and waste products produced out of metabolism are filtered and removed by the kidneys in form of urine. Apart from removing wastes, kidneys help in maintaining hemoglobin levels, bone health, blood pressure, and levels of minerals in the body in the right amount.

The commonest causes of kidney diseases are uncontrolled blood pressure and diabetes mellitus. Long-term use of pain killers are another major cause of kidney ailments. Apart from these, hereditary diseases and autoimmune diseases can also affect the kidneys.

Most kidney diseases tend to remain asymptomatic till its too late. Your doctor may suspect kidney involvement based on other conditions that you may be suffering from and order tests. Routinely, kidney diseases are identified by urine tests, ultrasonography of the kidney, and level of creatinine and urea in the blood.

This is a condition where the kidneys are not able to remove the waste products from the body. This may be mild, moderate or severe, where the kidneys fail to function completely.