Diabetes Information

In the kidney waste substances are filtered from the blood through tangles of capillaries called glomeruli and collected into tiny tubes. The waste substances and water flow into larger tubes and eventually down the ureters into the bladder. In diabetes the membrane around the capillaries may thicken, preventing the passage of wastes. Gradually the glomeruli solidify and die. You have two kidneys and millions of glomeruli, so it takes years for the loss of glomeruli to make a noticeable difference to kidney function.
The earliest sign of damage is usually microalbuminuria the leakage of tiny amounts of protein into the urine. The next sign is protein in the urine, detectable by dip-stick testing-American and European studies showed that one in eight people with diabetes had proteinuria. If you have proteinuria you should have a thorough kidney check — the protein may not be due to diabetes but infection. If kidney damage progresses, the kidneys start to fail. Waste substances are no longer filtered from the blood and start to accumulate, as may water, producing ankle swelling, shortness of breath, weakness, itchy skin, tiredness, anemia.

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