Renal failure is a condition that causes the kidneys to fail. Numerous types of kidney injury and damage can lead to full renal failure. For instance, in kidney failure, the kidneys are no longer able to filter out toxins from your blood, causing the body to retain damaging substances. Chronic kidney failure occurs when a disease slowly causes the kidneys to deteriorate. Acute renal failure, on the other hand, happens very quickly, and is usually the result of injury of some sort.
Medications
Some prescription drugs can cause serious kidney damage and even kidney failure. For instance, drugs, such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAID painkillers, taken over a great length of time on a regular basis can reduce kidney function to dangerous levels. Other drugs that may do this include lithium, aminoglycosides and drugs that contain iodine, which are usually used for radiology.
Sepsis
Another potential cause of renal failure is sepsis, which occurs when the kidneys quit working after too much infection and toxins have built up in the body. The kidneys essentially can't handle the load of the toxins and fail.
Degeneration of the Muscles
A condition called rhabdomyolysis can cause the muscles in the body to severely break down. This effectively stops up the kidneys, rendering them useless. The most typical cause of this degeneration is severe bodily trauma or "crushing" injuries.
Kidney Damage
Some diseases can damage the kidneys rather abruptly, causing inflammation of the area that's responsible for filtering toxins from the blood. Examples of such diseases include Goodpasture's syndrome and lupus erythematosus.
Chronic Renal Failure
Renal failure doesn't always occur quickly. When it develops over a number of years, it's called chronic renal failure and can be caused by a variety of conditions. These include kidney stones, diabetes, high blood pressure and prostate disease.
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