As many as one in 10 Irish people are estimated to have some form of chronic kidney disease, the Irish Kidney Association (IKA) has warned.

It has just launched a new guide for patients in Ireland who have been diagnosed with the condition, in an attempt to help them to understand it and protect their remaining kidney function.

Chronic kidney disease means that the kidneys have, over time, lost their ability to perform as well as they used to. This leads to a build-up of toxins in the blood. The disease can range from mild to the most severe - end-stage kidney disease, which usually requires dialysis and/or a kidney transplant.

With mild to moderate chronic kidney disease, a person may not feel unwell. The more advanced the disease, the more likely a person is to notice symptoms, which can include increasing tiredness, mild nausea, loss of appetite, having to urinate more often, pain in the kidney area and fluid retention.

However, not everyone with the disease will experience all of these symptoms. In fact, they may feel healthy and only a blood and urine test will show that their kidneys are actually impaired.

The new guide is a collaboration between the IKA and consultant nephrologist, Prof Austin Stack, of University Hospital Limerick.

Prof Stack described the guide as a ‘fantastic reservoir of knowledge and advice for patients in Ireland'.

"It will not only enlighten and inform patients who have been diagnosed with kidney disease in our community, it will also empower them to better manage their overall kidney health," he commented.

The guide explains medical terms and lays out the steps needed to ensure the best possible outcome, providing advice on areas such as nutrition, medication and emotional health.

"We are pleased that a resource gap which specifically targets recently diagnosed kidney patients has now been filled with this comprehensive book. We hope that it will help patients come to terms with the disease and take control, improving their health outcome to prolong their overall quality of life," commented IKA chief executive, Mark Murphy.

He noted that the guide also informs patients about other conditions, such as obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, ‘which can be a catalyst for kidney disease and vice versa'.

Living with Chronic Kidney Disease - A Guide for Patients can be downloaded from the IKA website here