M's Brush With Death

A very close family friend, M, who's like a brother to me, had a brush with death. Last week of March, his creatinine level reached 2000 umol/L. The doctor advised for an urgent dialysis but he escaped from the hospital after the lab result.

A few days later, his family and friends urged him to go back to the hospital because he was getting worse. His whole body was shaking, he was so pale, he can hardly stand up. His creatinine level increased to 2600 umol/L. He was supposed to wait for 2 more days to go through the dialysis procedure, but thank heavens, many people helped for him to be able start the dialysis.

He is getting better now.

What is creatinine or crea? According to healthline, creatinine is a waste product produced by muscle metabolism. As per the doctor, we all have creatinine in our urine and blood. The normal crea level is less than 133 umol/L.

When kidney and liver fails, there is a high level of creatinine found in our blood or urine. As per hopkinsmedicine.org, the liver breaks down harmful substances which are excreted in bile or blood. Bile by-products exits the body in the form of feces, and blood by-products are filtered by the kidneys and exits the body through urine.

M had a very bad habit of drinking too much liquor, those with 40% alcohol and up. Just last December, he added another bad habit of drinking liquor without eating. When I asked him why he wasn't eating much, he replied he is on diet. I scolded him that time, "if you are on diet, drop drinking alcohol and eat healthy food." He just laughed at me, at us.

I started drinking alcohol myself when I was 15 yrs old --- gin, vodka, wine. It would take more than a liter to take me down. I started drinking beer at 22, when I was working. I would guzzle up on beers, they just made me tipsy but not drunk. I was 30 when I decided to stopped drinking too much, and just drink occasionally. What triggered my decision? It was my 30th birthday, hard liquors were overflowing. The next 2 days, I was continuously vomiting til I tasted bile. Nothing was making me better ---- medicine, hot soup, soup for drunks, food, water. I threw it all up. My housemate brought me to a hospital, and there I stayed for 4 days. I had alcohol poisoning. I cannot forget what the doctor told me, "if you don't stop, your liver and kidney will be damaged. You're still young, don't waste your life going through a treatment that will only prolong your life but will never cure you."

So drink moderately and occasionally. Take care of your kidney and liver. We are praying for M to be healed completely. One friend, whose father died because of kidney failure, told me that only a miracle can help M now. The dialysis will only extend his life. Just like one doctor told me once.

On a footnote, dialysis procedure in the Philippines costs P4,500 per session. Recommended session is 3x per week, so that's P13,500 expense weekly.