About half the people with kidney disease and diabetes don’t know

Problems with your kidneys can cause a broad range of symptoms, including dry, itchy skin, bloating or water retention in the lower body, feelings of exhaustion or sleepiness, frequent urination, bloody or foamy urine, puffy eyes, nausea or lack of appetite, and even confusion or cognitive issues.

There seems to be significant co-morbidity between midlife and later kidney issues and the development of type 2 diabetes. A substantial number of patients who develop type 2 diabetes could also have some kind of kidney issue affecting their health, which will require its own treatment if the patient is to recover from their symptoms and improve their kidney function.

The longer someone with kidney problems goes without a proper diagnosis, the worse their prognosis for that medical condition becomes, as kidney damage can lead to kidney failure and permanent medical issues.

Medical professionals often overlook potentially life-altering kidney issues

Unfortunately, according to recent research, roughly 50% of the people who struggle with both type 2 diabetes and some kind of kidney issue will have that kidney issue go undiagnosed, with factors including their gender and their age potentially increasing their risk.

When you consider that estimates indicate that roughly 10% of the population suffers from decreased kidney function or other kidney issues, that lack of diagnosis for nearly half becomes particularly troubling.

Physicians have an obligation to rule out causes and provide an accurate diagnosis

All too often, it seems like the reason that people with a combination of type 2 diabetes and kidney issues go without a quick and accurate diagnosis is that their physicians stop looking for an explanation when they realize that diabetes is an issue.

There is some social stigma related to type 2 diabetes as an acquired illness that people could prevent with lifestyle changes. If the individual in question is also overweight or obese, their physician may dismiss their concerns about their health until they lose weight and attempt to manage their type 2 diabetes with lifestyle changes.

This acerbic approach to medicine does not benefit the patient and can leave them at risk for permanent kidney damage. Patients whose physicians have ignored symptoms that clearly showed signs of kidney problems may have the right to file a medical malpractice lawsuit for misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose against the physician or medical facility involved.