Age 82 and eGFR of 9 - options?

Posted by ckdcaregiver @ckdcaregiver, Jun 10 7:17am

Hello, My mom is age 82 and her latest eGFR dropped from 11 to 9. She has only recently started seeing a kidney specialist. He doesn’t seem very optimistic about dialysis at her age. My mom is a fighter and doesn’t want to give up. Any thoughts from others who have been in a similar situation? Thanks

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@ckdcaregiver why is the doctor reluctant to do dialysis for an 82 year old?

Can your mother have a Cystatin C to get an eGFR that is not affected by various factors like hydration, diet, muscle use?

It is probably still low but maybe it will convince the doctor. Otherwise, is the doctor suggesting palliative care?

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We have a 93 year old manin our church who is on dialysis. Fight for it if that's what your mom wants to do. Wishing her all the best.

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@meg8

We have a 93 year old manin our church who is on dialysis. Fight for it if that's what your mom wants to do. Wishing her all the best.

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Sorry. I meant to say man. Guess I didn't proof read very well!

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Thank You for responding. My mom feels okay overall despite the low eGFR. My guess is her numbers are dropping somewhat fast it was 11 for a couple of months then dropped to 9. She is also in remission from CNS Lymphoma. Diagnosed in April 2017 and have been in remission a few times now. Each time she fights back.

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@meg8

Sorry. I meant to say man. Guess I didn't proof read very well!

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No problem. I understood. Happens to me all the time.

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Totally agree on fighting for dialysis if that is what your mother wants.

My mother's eGFR was 17. Hospital IV hydration brought it up to 25 as I remember. I took her out of a behavioral unit where they didn't seem to care about the eGFR and just left a small cup of water on her bedside. I transferred her to a medical unit and asked for IV hydration.

What is your mother's eGFR is given sufficient hydration? Just curious. (I am dealing with kidney disease myself..) My creatinine based eGFR jumps all around but Cystatin C is steady. A change of two points in creatinine based e GFR would not be significant, right?

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@windyshores

Totally agree on fighting for dialysis if that is what your mother wants.

My mother's eGFR was 17. Hospital IV hydration brought it up to 25 as I remember. I took her out of a behavioral unit where they didn't seem to care about the eGFR and just left a small cup of water on her bedside. I transferred her to a medical unit and asked for IV hydration.

What is your mother's eGFR is given sufficient hydration? Just curious. (I am dealing with kidney disease myself..) My creatinine based eGFR jumps all around but Cystatin C is steady. A change of two points in creatinine based e GFR would not be significant, right?

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We were not offered IV hydration. Didn’t realize that would make a significant change? Sorry, so new to this. For the past year we’ve been told let’s monitor her count until March 2024 and it dropped below 16 to 13 then 12 then 11 now at 9. It was very difficult getting an appt with a kidney specialist.

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eGFR, BUN, creatinine…

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Any suggestions on next steps would be greatly appreciated.

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Also thoughts on home dialysis if arm veins are not in good shape?

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