Nephrology is a lesser-known and often overlooked field in modern medicine, and not without reason – the term was only coined in the 1960s. Before that, doctors who treated kidney diseases and disorders were simply known as practitioners of “kidney medicine.”

The reality is that kidney conditions are more common than you may think. Because of the kidneys’ function as filters for the blood, kidney disorders have the potential to affect your health and quality of life significantly. Our Paragon Infusion Centers, Home Infusion services, and Specialty Pharmacies provide several therapies to treat common kidney diseases. Read on to learn more about those kidney diseases and therapies or visit our locations page at https://paragonhealthcare.com/locations/ to find your closest Paragon resource.

Because our kidneys filter our blood, kidney diseases and those of many other systems throughout the body are closely connected. Specific to the field of nephrology, however, Paragon services treat the following conditions with infusion treatments:

Anemia with CKD/Iron Deficiency Anemia 

Anemia generally refers to any decrease in the concentration of red blood cells in the blood due to another disorder or disease. Anemia can be caused by both chronic kidney disease (or complete kidney) failure as well as an iron deficiency. If caused by a simple iron deficiency, a simple increase in dietary iron could suffice. Still, in many cases, the affected person may require iron infusions like those administered in Paragon Infusion Centers or as a Home Infusion treatment in the form of Venofer or Injectafer.

Pyelonephritis

Pyelonephritis is an infection of one or both kidneys. Although it usually begins in the body as a urinary tract infection in the urethra or bladder, it can sometimes require its own form of infused treatment with Rocephin or Invanz. Kidney infections, because they can have life-threatening consequences, are best suited for infusion treatments of antibiotics due to their high strength, their ability to target specific areas of the body, and their method of delivery – directly into the bloodstream and headed straight for the kidneys.

Post-transplant IVIg

When a patient receives a kidney transplant, as with any transplant, one of the chief risks is that the body’s immune system will reject the transplanted organ, literally attacking it as though it were a foreign intruder like a virus or bacterial infection. One fundamental way to prevent this post-transplant reaction is through infused treatments of IVIg (intravenous immunoglobulin). Immunoglobulin is one of the proteins that act as an antibody in the human body, identifying and attacking bacteria and viruses. The infusion of this naturally occurring immune-boosting protein ironically serves to reduce your immune system’s sensitivity to changes, preventing rejection of the transplanted organ.