Kidney Health for all

Celebrated every year on the second Thursday of March, ‘World Kidney Day’ is a campaign dedicated to raising the profile of kidney disease, which affects 10% of the adult population worldwide. It aims at increasing awareness of the importance of the kidneys to the health and reduce the impact of kidney disease and its associated problems worldwide.

Support group to combat kidney disease

As part of its endeavour to reach out to people suffering from kidney related complications, Global Hospitals announced the launch of ‘Global Kidney Support Group’ on the eve of World Kidney Day on Wednesday. The support group initiative was launched by Health Minister C Laxma Reddy in the presence of Dr KS Ratnakar, chairman, Global Medical Education and Research Foundation, Global Hospitals.

“Kidney diseases are increasingly becoming a serious health concern in our country. It is important for the public to understand the causes and take preventive measures at the earliest. The Kidney Support Group is our latest initiative to help people come together to overcome their health challenges,” said Dr Gandhe Sridhar, chief consultant – nephrologist and kidney transplant physician, Global Hospitals.

Highlighting the seriousness of the issue, Dr Sridhar added, “Chronic kidney disease is progressive loss in kidney function over a period of months to years which is irreversible. Unfortunately, the number of people suffering from chronic kidney disease is increasing rapidly. Roughly 800-1,000 people per million suffer from chronic kidney disease in India of which 150-200 suffer from severe kidney failure who require lifelong dialysis or kidney transplantation.”

He added that if detected at an early stage, chronic kidney disease can be prevented and premature deaths resulting from kidney diseases can be avoided. “Unfortunately 90 per cent of the patients seek medical advice when the disease is severe. This is because many of the patients do not show any symptoms until approximately 70 per cent of the kidney has failed. Even the routine laboratory tests may not detect this until approximately 50 per cent kidney functions are already lost,” he said.

Speaking on the various initiatives that would be undertaken during the support group meet, Dr J Ramashankar, consultant, nephrologist, Global Hospitals, said, “The support group meet would be organised once every two months where anyone can register themselves for free. People need to understand that it’s possible to overcome their health related issues as there are many options available. What is important is the knowledge on what is the safest way.” The kidney support group programme aims to follow internationally acknowledged best practices to bring together specialists and patients suffering from kidney diseases.