Kidney Disease Symptoms On Face And Neck: Doctor Shares Early Warning Signs That You Shouldn’t Ignore

Kidneys are commonly referred to as the body's natural filters, quietly functioning day and night to flush out waste products, regulate fluids, and manage necessary minerals. However, once these life-sustaining organs begin to deteriorate, the damage often goes unnoticed until it is well advanced. Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is commonly referred to as a “silent killer” since early symptoms are uncommon, so regular check-ups are essential, particularly in those at risk from diseases such as diabetes, hypertension or a family history of kidney disease.

Remarkably, the neck and face can show some of the very first warning signs of kidney disease, signs that are usually ignored or attributed to minor problems. From puffiness of the eyes and colour changes in the skin to chronic dryness, itchiness, and even engorgement of neck veins, these fine nuances could be the body's signalling of kidney issues. In conversation with The Daily Jagran, Dr. Anusha Gudipati, Consultant Nephrologist, Asian Institute of Nephrology and Urology Hyderabad, shares the symptoms of kidney diseases on the face and neck.

Symptoms Of Kidney Diseases On Face And Neck

Facial Puffiness

This is one of the earliest signs that can be noticed, due to fluid accumulation in the face, swelling appears more marked in the early morning, especially in the lower eyelid region. As the disease progresses, swelling can be present in the feet, legs, and hands.

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Changes In Skin Colour

As kidneys are getting damaged, waste products start accumulating, which leads to skin colour changes from paleness to a grey hue, and areas of darkened skin. Nails change like half and half (a white colour upper part and reddish brown colour below).

Itchy And Dry Skin

Advanced kidney disease results in the accumulation of urea, other minerals, which causes irritation to nerve endings in the skin, leading to itching, which results in redness, rashes and dryness of the skin.

Kidney Disease Symptoms On Face And Neck (Image Credits: Canva)

Foul Breath

As the kidney damage progresses, accumulation of waste products like urea, creatinine occurs, which results in foul breath (uremic breath) and metallic taste in the mouth.

Dizziness

As the toxins get accumulated, they can affect the brain, low haemoglobin levels can also affect the brain by supplying lower oxygen, which all leads to a foggy head and dizziness, and extreme tiredness.

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Neck Vein Distention

In advanced kidney disease, where the fluid accumulation is severe, it will also affect the heart, causing more work pressure on the heart, leading to failure. In that scenario, we can see the jugular vein, which is present in the neck, gets distended.

As kidney disease won’t show any symptoms until it progresses to the late stages, from where kidney disease is irreversible. Whenever symptoms like those discussed above present, early evaluation of kidney health is recommended.

Prevention is always better than the cure, so people at risk (diabetic, hypertensive, family h/o kidney disease) are advised to undergo regular kidney health check-ups (once in 3-6months), by which we can detect the early kidney diseases and we can treat them.