Tsars’ diseases. Peter I the Great. Moans and screams were heard all over the palace

Historians studying the history of Our Country and its ruling dynasties emphasize that most of the tsars probably did not die naturally. They were poisoned or murdered. For those whose reign did not end in mysterious death, fate did not spare them either. Although the testimonies of contemporaries are usually ambiguous, several diseases have been identified that ended the life of the emperors. Although the medicine of that time could not cure them, the tragic end was not only due to her helplessness. Peter I the Great is an example of this.

1. Health problems began when Peter the Great was approaching forty.
2. He was 53 when he died, and his groans and screams were heard all over the Winter Palace
3. Currently, we consider renal failure caused by alcoholism as the cause of death. What is this disease?
4. More current information can be found on the Onet homepage.

He shouted that he was “burning” in his gut

In his adolescence, Peter the Great was an example of health, but even an extremely lively organism would not stand up to years of a hustle and bustle of life and an inexhaustible amount of alcohol. Health problems began when the Tsar was approaching forty. He was ill again and again, he was bleeded several times, he underwent a deworming treatment, but despite the doctors’ requests, he did not change his habits. In one of his biographies we read: “Doctors found prostate enlargement, nephritis and symptoms of venereal disease (rotting wounds on the body)”.

He was 53 when he died, and his groans and screams were heard all over the Winter Palace. In January 1725, 10 days after the ceremony of blessing the water on the frozen Neva, doctors diagnosed Peter I with cystitis and gangrene. The Tsar suffered terrible torments because he could not urinate. Doctors decided to undergo surgery and produced a liter of fetid urine. The improvement lasted two days, the feverish monarch regained consciousness, but a breakdown soon followed. The temperature rose sharply, there was pain in the abdomen, headaches and hand paralysis. The Emperor was in agony. He shouted that he was “burning” in his gut. Later he fell into a coma from which he never woke up.

Fot. East News/ Fine Art Images

Peter I the Great was killed by kidney failure

Currently, the cause of death is renal failure due to alcoholism, which has led to uremia (uremia). The body was poisoned with unexcavated metabolic products, and cystitis and kidney stones added fuel to the fire.

Kidney failure that killed Peter the Great is a disease that leads to the impairment of the work of other organs and the development of life-threatening conditions. The kidneys gradually stop cleaning the blood, too little water is excreted, and toxins and waste products accumulate in the body.

We talk about chronic kidney disease when abnormalities persist for more than three months. We recognize it by determining the amount of glomerular filtration rate, GFR (glomerular filtration rate), albuminuria (presence of fine albumin in the urine), abnormal urine sediment, abnormalities in imaging tests or biopsy.

The five stages of chronic kidney disease

Kidney damage is indicated by:

• urine tests (proteinuria or hematuria)

• imaging tests of the kidneys (e.g. cysts)

• renal impairment, ie decreased glomerular filtration rate (GFR). The amount of GFR is calculated from the serum creatinine concentration taking into account body weight, age and gender. Normal GFR is above 90 milliliters per minute, chronic renal failure is considered to be permanently below 60 milliliters per minute.

Depending on the size of the GFR, there are five stages of chronic kidney disease, with each higher stage representing a greater impairment of kidney function and more serious disorders. Chronic kidney disease is progressive, with a reduction in the number of properly functioning nephrons and kidney fibrosis over time. Stages G3 – G5 are chronic renal failure. Stage G5, where the glomerular filtration rate is already greatly reduced, is called end stage renal disease or uremia.

The most common causes of chronic kidney disease include:

• diabetic kidney disease (diabetic nephropathy)

• glomerulonephritis

• kidney damage as a result of high blood pressure (hypertensive nephropathy) and atherosclerosis.

The symptoms of chronic kidney disease depend on its cause

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects an average of 10-11%. population. Nearly 90 percent of them are not aware of it, because in the initial, and often even in the advanced stage of the disease, there are no symptoms. Meanwhile, untreated chronic kidney disease leads to kidney failure, which requires dialysis or a kidney transplant, and causes premature death.

It turns out that although men suffer from kidney failure more often, women are more likely to suffer premature death because of it, and they also lose more years of life (almost four on average).

In Poland, dialysis treatment is started annually by approx. 6 thousand. people, but only 5 percent live up to this stage. sick. As much as 95 percent dies, among others for: hypertension, diabetes, strokes, heart attacks, heart failure, infections and pneumonia during the 20-30 years of the disease.

Symptoms depend on the cause that led to the kidney damage and the stage of the disease. If the cause is primary kidney disease, such as glomerulonephritis or interstitial nephritis, there is proteinuria, haematuria, sometimes edema (nephrotic syndrome), and often high blood pressure. However, if the cause is diabetes or high blood pressure, the first symptom of chronic kidney disease is the appearance of a small amount of albumin in the urine, called microalbuminuria (when the amount of albumin in the urine is between 30 and 300 milligrams a day).

Sometimes the first symptom noticed is high blood pressure, measured at a visit to the doctor, or passing water more often than usual, especially at night.

Failure to remove water and sodium causes them to accumulate in the body, leading to increased pressure, swelling (of the face, feet, and hands), and worsening of the heartbeat manifested by shortness of breath or shortness of breath.

Impairment of phosphate excretion and the production of the active form of vitamin D leads to hyperparathyroidism and various bone disorders called renal osteodystrophy. When phosphate levels are high, they can bind to your tissues with calcium and build up in the walls of your arteries, increasing your risk of heart attack and stroke. Insufficient production of erythropoietin causes anemia (anemia), and impaired acid excretion leads to so-called acidosis.

Chronic kidney disease cannot be cured

Complete cure of chronic kidney disease is not possible as the loss of nephrons is irreversible and the process of kidney fibrosis is progressing. However, it is possible to slow the progression of the disease. The most important thing is to remove the causes of kidney damage, properly treat hypertension and reduce proteinuria using the so-called nephroprotective drugs. The condition that comes closest to recovery is a successful kidney transplant.

Diet is of particular importance in the therapy, as foods are a source of substances that burden the defective kidneys (e.g. protein) and substances that cannot be effectively excreted (phosphorus, potassium, sodium). It is usually necessary to limit salt intake (less than 5 g per day), as the sodium contained in it increases blood pressure.