Thursday, July 5, 2007

The Diagnose

After blood labs, ultra sound, and a kidney biopsy, our son was diagnosed with a kidney disease, IGA Nephropathy, March 1998. The nephrologist told us that our son had 48% kidney function. During this revelation, his creatinine was 2.1. Any creatinine level above 1.5 is possibly a kidney problem. Then, he was 22 years old. My husband, Darryl, and I sat there stunned. Usually, IGA is caused by some kind of respiratory infection. Our son did not have any kind of respiratory onset; although, in 1996 and 1997, Michigan State University had a meningitis epidemic. The doctor started him on prednisone and blood pressure medicine to maintain his kidneys and his high blood pressure. After six weeks, the nephrologist made us all an appointment with the Nephrology Department at the University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Our son's girlfriend, Eileen, went with us, too. She and her family were great supporters.
What is more, the four of us learned quickly about creatinine and BUN read outs from the lab reports.