March 10

Opening to the world the knowledge of chronic kidney disease

• 1 in 10 adults suffers from chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the world
• The disease is projected to be the fifth leading cause of death by 2040. 
• CKD is a global public health threat, but generally ranks low on government health agendas

One in 10 adults worldwide has chronic kidney disease (CKD), and if left untreated, it can be fatal. While early detection enables care and management to prevent morbidity and mortality, as well as improve cost-effectiveness and sustainability, kidney disease-related mortality continues to rise each year and is projected to be the fifth leading cause of death by 2040. Persistent and ongoing CKD there is a knowledge gap, which is demonstrable at all levels of healthcare:

• The community: Barriers to a better understanding of kidney health include the complex nature of kidney disease information, low referral awareness, limited health literacy, limited availability of CKD information, and lack of preparedness to learn. ( DMM 2020 ).
• The health worker – Another barrier to overcome to ensure greater awareness is more focused education of physicians, as they are in charge of the medical condition of patients. ( Weekly Day 2009 )/ ( Weekday 2021 )
• Public health policymakers: Finally, CKD is a global public health threat, but generally ranks low on government health agendas ( WKD 2008 ) with political commitments on noncommunicable disease programs that focus predominantly on four major diseases: cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. and chronic respiratory disease.

This knowledge gap is stifling the fight against kidney disease and increasing the inherent associated mortality. The WKD Joint Steering Committee calls on everyone around the world to not only be aware of the disease, but to actively learn what their own kidney health measures. 

For example, what is your blood pressure and what are the goals of treatment ( WKD 2010 ). It is a cause that engages everyone in the kidney community around the world: doctors, scientists, nurses and other healthcare providers, patients, administrators, health policy experts, government officials, nephrology organizations and foundations. Everyone needs to be aware of the ways in which increased kidney care in government policy can bring significant benefits to both patients and health care budgets ( WKD 2007 ).

Therefore, it is essential

• Encourage people in general to adopt a healthy diet and lifestyles (access to clean water, exercise, healthy diet, tobacco control, and climate change prevention) to maintain good kidney health, preserve kidney function longer in people with CKD and raise general awareness of the importance of the kidneys
• Expand kidney patient education (including practical dietary and lifestyle advice) to empower patients, their caregivers, and their support systems to achieve health outcomes and life goals that are meaningful and important to people with CKD, including kidney failure.
• Recognize the right of patients and caregivers to be able to assess, understand and use health information related to CKD
• Require renal health care providers and patient organizations to offer information related to CKD according to different levels of health literacy.
• Encourage and support primary care physicians to improve their recognition and management of patients with CKD across its spectrum, from prevention and early detection of CKD to secondary and tertiary prevention and care of kidney failure.
• Integrate CKD and kidney failure prevention into national noncommunicable disease programs for comprehensive and integrated services, which are essential to improve early detection and follow-up of kidney care at the country level.
• Inform politicians about the impact of kidney disease and kidney failure on the health of their constituents and its associated burden on health care budgets/systems to encourage policy adoption and resource allocation that address the global burden of kidney disease and ensure a good life with kidney disease.