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What is lead poisoning?

Lead is a natural element found in small amounts in the earth.  Lead has many good uses, but too much can be harmful to humans and animals. 

Lead poisoning is a serious health problem. It can happen if lead builds up in your body, usually over many months or years.  Lead poisoning can be harmful in adults, but is especially harmful in children because they have a small body size and are...

Nocturnal enuresis means wetting the bed at night. It usually happens after age 5, and it affects many school-age children and even some teens. It's not a serious health problem, and children usually outgrow it. Still, bedwetting can be upsetting for children and parents.

• Primary enuresis: a child has never had bladder control at night and has always wet the bed...

More than 37 million Americans—one in seven adults—have kidney disease. Millions more are at increased risk for getting it, and most don’t know it. Kidney disease can be found and treated early to prevent more serious kidney disease and other complications.

The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) recommends three simple tests to check for kidney disease:

For information on upcoming NKF kidney health screenings...

Diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure and hardening of the arteries (arteriosclerosis) cause damage to both the heart and kidneys. So if you have heart disease, then it is likely that you have kidney disease and vice-versa. Many people don’t experience severe symptoms until their kidney or heart disease is quite advanced, but there are some warning signs. Could you be ignoring them?

The National Kidney Foundation shares...

Nephrectomy (nephro = kidney, ectomy = removal) is the surgical removal of a kidney. The procedure is done to treat kidney cancer as well as other kidney diseases and injuries. Nephrectomy is also done to remove a healthy kidney from a donor (either living or deceased) for transplantation. Thousands of nephrectomies are performed every year in the U.S.

There are two types of nephrectomy for a...

Kidney disease is common among adults, and many habits learned by kids can set the stage for kidney health as they get older. You can help your kid(s) protect their kidneys from an early age. Here are seven golden rules to start following now to ensure your child’s future kidney health.

1. Get regular exercise/activity/play: Regular exercise and physical activity can help your kid feel better, and improve and maintain their health....

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that infects and damages your immune system. Your immune system helps your body defend itself against infection and other disease. HIV attacks and destroys the disease-fighting cells of your immune system and leaves your body weak against infection and cancer.

Having HIV does not mean that you have AIDS (acquired immune deficiency...

To best understand how to treat distal renal tubular acidosis (dRTA), it is important to understand what dRTA is. Primary dRTA is caused by a change in one of several genes and is inherited. Secondary dRTA is caused by another disease or medication.

The kidneys have many important jobs. One of them is to maintain a balance between acid and base (opposite of acid) by removing and filtering acids from the...

Everyone needs potassium. It is an important nutrient that helps keep your heart healthy and your muscles working right. But did you know that too much potassium can be dangerous, especially if you have kidney disease? It can cause a condition called “hyperkalemia.” The good news? There are steps you can take to help keep your potassium levels within normal range. If you...