The Kidney: a vital organ for human survival

Takoradi, March 09, GNA - Dr Nana Ama Barnes, the Physician Specialist at the Effia-Nkwanta Regional Hospital, has called on the public to recognize the vital role kidneys play in the human body and thus take good care of it.

She said that the kidney, when damaged and diseased, causes serious morbidity. It also contributed towards morbidity of cardiovascular disease in over 12 million people worldwide. Dr Barnes told the GNA in an interview that chronic kidney diseases had become one of the silent killers in the country which is mostly caused by hypertension, diabetes and infectious diseases. She said too many people ignored the functions of the kidneys which is at the heart of the body and tasked to remove toxins and excess water from the blood.

Kidneys also help to control blood pressure, produces red blood cells and hormones and to keep the bones healthy. Dr Barnes said early detection of the conditions which cause the diseases would lead to early management of the condition. "Management of the disease in its chronic stage is expensive and is currently not available under any health insurance scheme", she added.

World figures indicate that more than 500 million persons, approximately one out of every 10 adults, had some form of kidney damage.

Dr Barnes therefore advised the general public to regularly go for medical check-ups to enable health professionals to detect any infections especially non-communicable diseases at an earlier stage. She said diseases were often reported to hospitals very late when the patient was already in the end-stage of the disease which according to her was expensive to treat.

Dr Barnes added that second Thursday of March in every year, has been designated as World Kidney Day.

It is an initiative of the International Society of Nephrology and International Federation of Kidney Foundations to inform and educate health policy-makers, patients and the general public that kidney disease was common, harmful and treatable. This year the worldwide day will be marked under the theme: "Diabetes, the Leading cause of Kidney Failure" and activities such as free kidney screening, medical advice, seminars, public lectures and press conferences would be organised.