Saturday, February 27, 2010

Test results 1 year on

I've just had more blood tests and another 24-hour urine tests. I was disappointed to find the results showed no significant improvement, although my doctors tell me I should be happy that there is no worsening of the condition:

Serum creatinine: 2.1 mg/dl

The calculated creatinine clearance rate (an estimate of kidney function) was a lot worse than my previous test showing 43 ml/min compared to 53 ml/min previously. This is the same rate as measured in March 2009 and better than my worst measurement of 33 ml/min in April. Something tells me that the test results vary a lot...

A positive sign was that amount of albumine released into my urine over 24 hours has continued to reduce significantly: 335 mg/day in these tests, 989 mg/day in October 2009, and 1485 mg/day in April 2009.

My blood appears to be healthier, showing less anemia (hemoglobin 13.3 g/dl, normal is 14 - 18) and almost "normal" in most other measures. This could be the result of (prescribed) multi-vitamin I've been taking, or the liter of fruit/vegetable juice I drink a day.

My serum Uric Acid levels have shot up. Not sure what the cause of this is. It's easily controlable by taking Alopurinol but it would be nice to know what causes it to be high in the first place (instead of just supressing it...)

Next steps:
I learned something very interesting about genes recently: apparently our DNA (contained in every cell in the body) is more than just a set of instructions, it is actually a logical program causing certain things to happen when certain conditions are met. This is very interesting as it suggests that the body has the ability to grow new kidney cells but this may never happen because there is no apparent way for an adult to activate the appropriate genetic program.

The convential view, therefore, is that any damage done to my kidneys is done and the best I can hope for is avoid further damage (which is difficult if no one knows what was causing the damage in the first place!)

Miracle believers on the other hand, believe (even if they don't see it this way) that the body can somehow be persuaded (through prayer, positive thinking, etc.) to produce the appropriate chemical signals to activate cell production/reparation. I personally believe this to be possible but it also seems to be hard work with a low probability of success!

Therefore my list of things to try is:

Physical:

- Try drinking magnetized water again. I was doing this for a couple months prior to my "big" improvement when serum creatinine dropped from 2.3 to 2.0 mg/dl. The problem is that my supplier has closed down so I'd have to buy the filtration device. I think it costs about $600 USD and I don't really believe in it yet!

- Start taking ketosteril amino-acid supplements again. These are very expensive (about $600 USD a month) and I'm not sure they're beneficial as I continued taking them after I reached serum creatinine of 2.0 mg/dl and in my next test the level had risen slightly to 2.1 mg/dl.

Metaphysical:

- Ritually dedicate a few minutes every day to consciously "programming" my body for healthy kidneys.

- Try Reiki (an "energy" treatment technique). Haven't found a local practicioner yet.