How can high serum creatinine level be treated?

Q: My 85 years old grandfather is having high creatinine value, which was around 7 but after first dialysis it came down to 6. Now dialysis has been done for 4 times in the past 2 weeks and still the creatinine has not come down. It is fluctuating between 4 and 5. The doctor has suggested the food in which protein is eliminated. He takes Nimulid 3 to 4 times daily. But drowsiness and sluggishness is increasing day by day. He is not taking any food. Why he is felling drowsy? Why is he not eating anything? Is it due to the repeated dialysis? Why the creatinine is increasing so frequently after dialysis?

A:It seems that your grandfather has suffered irreversible damage to kidneys (as obvious from his serum creatinine staying high) requiring him to stay on maintenance dialysis. Symptoms described above like weakness, fatigue, poor appetite, etc. can occur due to multiple reasons including inadequate dialysis treatment (essentially meaning inadequate removal of waste toxins from his blood), and severe anaemia (resulting from kidney failure). Staying drowsy can result from inadequate dialysis, severe infections and certain medications, some of which are not adequately removed by dialysis. I would recommend thorough review of his medication list besides complete evaluation by his Nephrologist to ascertain his condition as described.