People with renal (kidney) problems may have a bad taste in their mouths and bad breath (halitosis). This occurs because the kidneys fail to remove urea from the blood. The urea breaks down to form ammonia, which has a foul smell. Bone changes also can occur because the body cannot absorb calcium properly. Therefore, people with kidney disease are at risk for losing bone from their jaws. Their teeth may become loose and eventually fall out.
Many symptoms and complications of kidney disease can affect dental treatment. These include:
Kidney disease itself causes some of these symptoms. Others are caused by medicines and treatments for the disease.
Tell anyone who takes your blood pressure that you have a shunt. The blood pressure cuff should not be placed on the arm with the shunt. Your blood pressure should be taken on the other arm, or on a leg.
Before you receive treatment, give your dentist a list of your medicines and their doses. Your dentist will consider the medicines you take before prescribing other drugs. Some medicines may make kidney failure worse. Some may build up in the body until the next dialysis. Kidney disease can affect your blood counts. Give a copy of your most recent blood tests to your dentist as often as it is available.
