LIHU‘E — A simple blood pressure test is just one of the ways people can participate in the 2011 World Kidney Day, themed Protect Your Kidneys, Save Your Heart. Kidney transplant survivor Steve “Duke” Wolshin on Thursday accepted a proclamation
LIHU‘E — A simple blood pressure test is just one of the ways people can participate in the 2011 World Kidney Day, themed Protect Your Kidneys, Save Your Heart.
Kidney transplant survivor Steve “Duke” Wolshin on Thursday accepted a proclamation from Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr., launching the state’s celebration of National Kidney Month, and March 10 as World Kidney Day.
Almost 20 percent of Hawai‘i’s population is affected by chronic kidney disease, the proclamation states. A World Kidney Day release states that kidney diseases affects about 600 million people around the world — about one in 10 people.
“We have one of the highest rates in the nation,” said Wolshin, who had a transplant four years ago. “That is not a number to be proud of. We have too many people on dialysis, and we have too many people dying of CKD.”
About 156,000 people in Hawai‘i are affected by CKD and another 100,000 are at risk. Kidney failure rates are 30 percent higher in Hawai‘i than the national average, according to Carvalho’s proclamation.
“World Kidney Day and the National Kidney Month are commemorated to raise awareness of CKD and kidney failure,” Wolshin said. “Do you know that 80 percent of kidney failures are self-induced, and simple measures such as watching one’s diet and stress levels are effective measures against CKD and kidney failures?”
The World Kidney Day website states the event started in 2006 and has not stopped growing since its inception, each year being focussed on a different campaign or theme.
The objectives of World Kidney Day are to raise awareness about the body’s “amazing kidneys,” highlight that diabetes and high blood pressure are key risk factors for CKD, and to encourage systematic screening of all patients with diabetes and hypertension for CKD.
The 2011 World Kidney Day campaign aims to call attention to the large role played by kidney dysfunction in increasing premature cardiovascular disease.
Chronic kidney disease includes conditions that damage the body’s kidneys and decrease its ability to keep the body healthy. If the disease becomes worse, wastes can build to high levels in the blood, with complications such as high blood pressure, anemia, or low blood count, weak bones, poor nutritional health and nerve damage resulting, the National Kidney Foundation website states.
Early detection and treatment often can keep CKD from getting worse. When the disease progresses, it may eventually lead to kidney failure which requires dialysis or a kidney transplant to maintain life, according to NKF.
Currently, there are 348 Hawai‘i patients awaiting kidney transplants, the proclamation states. Of the 105,000 Americans waiting for organ transplants, 83,000 are waiting for a kidney.
“Preventive measures are the best ways for people,” Wolshin said. “Stress is the No. 1 killer, leading to high blood pressure and eventually, kidney failure. People should be doing pressure screenings daily.”
