Hello, Without knowing all the pertinent details, it sounds like your relative has been advised to go for a kidney biopsy procedure to find out the cause for the protein leakage, which seems like it has faced a sudden jump in a relatively short period of time (ie 2 months). A kidney biopsy is NOT a surgery per se; rather, it is a minor procedure whereby a doctor inserts a thin biopsy needle through the patient’s side to remove a very small amount of kidney tissue. This is then sent to the lab for examination.

Dr Francisco has provided an excellent answer, so I shall try not to repeat anything, but I would like to add that perhaps you could consider seeking a body plethysmography - this aims to measure body fat and some centres might do CT or MRI scans to look for internal fat deposits. Most sports medicine centres will be able to provide pre-participation screenings, that look at the things Dr Francisco mentions in addition to a full MSK screen and assessment of your exercise/health goals. We can also provide you with advice on exercise as well as dietary consultations.

Thanks for the question. Certainly diet plays a significant role in weight management or reduction. Essentially, it’s a matter of balance. If you put more calories in than you expend, you will be in a positive balance and hence this is stored by the body for a rainy day. In the past, when your ancestors had a less predictable supply of food, it meant that over the good times, they stored fat and in harder times, our body used these fat stores. Interestingly, ketones are a byproduct of fat breakdown and also a metabolite for the brain.

Thank you for your question - an interesting one for sure! "Low red blood cells" might be mentioned if you have low iron or an actual drop in your red cell count. PThe former is certainly more common and it might be due to insufficient intake of iron, low production or increased breakdown. Suffice to say the various reasons are quite complicated and laying them down here might not help the situation, but I would suggest seeing a physician to get a baseline blood count and iron levels assessed. These can help identify what might going on and help your treatment.

Spironolactone (Aldactone) costs about S$1. 00 or more per tablet. Spironolactone is a potassium-sparing diuretic (water pill) that prevents your body from absorbing too much salt and keeps your potassium levels from getting too low. In fact, it is primarily used to treat: high blood pressure, heart failure and hypokalemia. Besides that, it can also be used to treat fluid retention (oedema) in patients who are suffering from: congestive heart failure, liver cirrhosis or nephrotic syndrome.

By taking a lot of fruits. Banana contains a lot of potassium. Thanks in advance! Dr Paul Ang Teng SoonM16545ZMBBS (Singapore)GDFM, GDMH (NUS)MRCS (Edinburgh)Zenith Medical Clinic*-- Your GP for life --*Tel: 64433678punggolgp. com *** Emails are not known to be a very secure form of communication. Please delete this email immediately and go to your trash and delete it again if you have sent me your confidential or personal data. Please take note that we are cannot be held liable if your information has been leaked via your mailbox.

You will need a CT scan to rule out urinary or kidney stones.

Hi, A great advantage of urine disptick is that you can get information immediately in different clinical settings. Typically, it is used at the bedside when a patient is hospitalized or in an outpatient clinic when you would like to get clinical information rapidly while waiting for lab confirmation. I agree with Dr Tzeyeong Teng's previous answer as it is not commonly used at home, but many times it is underutilized as you can see in my examples below. Urine dipstick can be used in home care for patients with poor mobility or very frail or living far away or too busy to come to the clinic.

Typical symptoms of a kidney infection are pain over the left or right loin (the area of your below your ribs) adjacent to your spine fever sometimes chills nausea and vomiting loss of appetite pain passing urine - this may be present if the urine infection is also affecting the bladder

Screening and diagnostic tests have different meanings and purposes. A screening test is done to detect disease in people who do not have any symptoms of disease. You can read more about health screening tests in Singapore here. A diagnostic test is performed to confirm the presence of disease. In your case, IgA nephropathy can certainly be SCREENED for, at a GP clinic or at the polyclinic. Screening for IgA nephropathy is carried out by collecting a urine sample, and looking for blood or protein. On the other hand, diagnosis for IgA nephropathy requires a kidney biopsy.

Obesity, particularly abdominal obesity, is associated with insulin resistance (where your body is resistant to the effect of insulin and requires higher levels of insulin to maintain the same level of glucose) and this often leads to the development of diabetes. The definition takes into account a few parameters, namely your glucose levels, triglyceride levels, good cholesterol levels , blood pressure and waist circumference. Smoking, high carbohydrate diet and lack of exercise are a few of the factors that increase your risk of having metabolic syndrome.

Cortical cyst of the kidney basically is a fluid filled sac that grows on the cortex ( surface) of the kidney. Kidney cysts are very common. For kidney cysts, we must determine 3 factors before any interventions1. The size2. Whether it is causing you any symptoms3. Whether it is cancerousFor simple ( benign) kidney cysts that is big or causing you symptoms, we usually perform laparoscopic or key hole surgery to remove the wall of the cyst and the fluid. As for the cost of the procedure, we will need to assess you and look at the scans first before estimating the cost of the procedure.

Most cases of IgA are not familial, that is, it doesn't run in families. However, family members do higher incidence of urine abnormalities. Since most kidney diseases start without any symptoms it is helpful to do a yearly check on the kidney function and the urine for blood and proteins. If the tests are normal, you don't need to see a kidney specialist.

Hi, When there is discoloration of urine it is ideal to figure out if that could be a normal response to dehydration, when the urine is more concentrated and either dark yellow or almost brown. If this indeed happens when you do not drink sufficient water, just try to hydrate yourself better. But it is important to be sure it is not a manifestation of kidney disease, specifically blood in the urine. Many medical conditions like liver disease can also change the colour of the urine to a darker one.

Bubbles in the urine is not a specific sign of urinary problems. However, bubbles in the urine can be due to excessive protein in the urine and this can be due to kidney diseases. Aches on the side of the torso can also be due to inflammation or infection of the kidney.