What Are the Treatments for Pediatric Renal Insufficiency?

Pediatric renal insufficiency--also called chronic kidney disease or kidney failure--is a condition where the kidneys slowly lose the ability to remove waste and excess fluid from the body, according to the National Institutes of Health. There are a variety of treatments for pediatric renal insufficiency, depending on the severity of disease.

Controlling Blood Pressure

• Maintaining a healthy blood pressure is a critical factor in treating chronic kidney disease, according to the NIH medical encyclopedia. Consistently high blood pressure can cause further damage to the kidneys and worsen the condition. NIH experts report that doctors commonly prescribe drugs called ACE inhibitors to control blood pressure.

Anemia Treatments

• Since anemia--low red blood cell count--occurs in patients with pediatric renal insufficiency, doctors frequently prescribe treatments to manage it, according to Kids Health, an educational site from the Nemours Foundation. NIH experts cite iron pills, shots of a medicine called erythropoietin or blood transfusions as possible anemia treatments.

Dietary Changes

• A study published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood reports specific dietary changes as treatment for pediatric renal insufficiency. The authors of the study recommend restricting intakes of protein, potassium, phosphates and sodium to ease stress on the kidneys.

Dialysis

• Patients with more severe forms of pediatric renal insufficiency or children who have lost most of their kidney function move from simpler treatments to dialysis, which is an external cleansing of the blood, according to Kids Health. Hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis both rely on machines to perform the work of the kidneys.

Kidney Transplant

• Patients who lose most of their kidney function are usually candidates for a kidney transplant, according to Kids Health. Doctors either find a kidney from a living donor or a person who has died and donated their kidneys. If a donor is not readily available, patients continue on dialysis until doctors find a kidney and schedule a transplant.