Prerenal Azotemia: Causes, signs, and symptoms
LTC Nursing Assistant Trainer, January 12, 2012
Prerenal azotemia is the most common form of kidney failure seen in hospitalized patients. Long-term care facility residents are commonly diagnosed with prerenal azotemia, particularly if they have been diagnosed with dehydration. With prerenal azotemia, inadequate perfusion of the kidneys occurs as a result of extracellular fluid volume depletion or cardiovascular disease.
The build-up of nitrogen waste products and accumulation of excess fluid in the body are responsible for most of the symptoms of prerenal azotemia. Common causes of this condition are:
- Dehydration (most common cause)
- Conditions in which the heart cannot pump sufficient blood
- Heart failure
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Bleeding
- Burns
Signs and symptoms of prerenal azotemia include the following:
- Reduced urine production; little or no urine produced
- Confusion and decreased alertness that progressively worsens
- Thirst
- Edema
- Abdominal pain
- Rapid pulse
- Dry mouth
- Increased urination at night
- Signs or symptoms of infection elsewhere in the body
This is an excerpt from the HCPro book, The Long-Term Care Nursing Desk Reference, Second Edition, by Barbara Acello, MS, RN.
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