‘Protect your kidneys, save your heart’

KARACHI – Kidney diseases increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases for people with diabetes, hypertension and other heart diseases, healthcare experts revealed in a message on World Kidney Day that was observed on Thursday around the world.
They said that chronic kidney disease (CKD) could lead the patients to suffer cardiovascular diseases and in order to save the heart from diseases, one has to protect the kidneys.
Currently in Pakistan, one-third of patients on dialysis have kidney diseases as a result of longstanding and uncontrolled high blood pressure. “Keep your kidneys healthy as they are amazing organs – just the size of a fist – that help keep the body fit. Healthy kidneys also reduce the risk of getting cardiovascular diseases,” the experts said. This year’s World Kidney Day theme was ‘Protect your kidneys, save your heart’, which highlighted the link between CKD, a global medical problem, and its strong relationship to cardiovascular diseases.
Addressing a seminar organised by the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) to observe the World Kidney Day, AKUH consultant nephrologist Dr Abdul Maqbool Khalil said that patients with hypertension or diabetes could be afflicted with kidney problems such as CKD, and these diseases should be detected early on using simple blood and urine tests. “Once detected, there are several protective measures that can be taken,” he said, adding that healthy kidneys also reduce the risk of getting cardiovascular diseases.
Talking about preventive measures, he said that a low-salt diet could help lower blood pressure. He advised to control blood sugar level, monitor blood pressure, stop smoking, increase physical activity and lose weight because they could help prevent kidney-related diseases as well as keep the heart healthy. AKUH consultant nephrologist Dr Waqar Kashif said that people with high risk of developing the disease include those with diabetes and high blood pressure; individuals who are obese, smoke or are over the age of 40; and those with a family history of kidney diseases.
“CKD is a slowly progressing, often silent, disease in which the kidneys gradually lose the ability to remove toxins and waste products from the blood,” he said.
AKUH Nephrology Department head and consultant nephrologist Dr Ather Hussain pointed out that screening and taking preventive measures could reduce the complications that could occur from CKD; however, all CKD patients should be treated as though they are at high risk of contracting cardiovascular diseases. Undetected CKD could lead to the kidneys becoming progressively weaker, eventually leading to kidney failure and the need for dialysis or even a kidney transplant, he added.
“High blood pressure is one of the leading causes of CKD worldwide. Currently in Pakistan, one-third of patients on dialysis have kidney disease as a result of longstanding and uncontrolled high blood pressure.
Moreover, patients who have diabetes, in addition to high blood pressure, have greater chances of developing diabetic kidney diseases,” he said. As CKD progresses, controlling blood pressure becomes more difficult, with patients sometimes requiring five to six different types of medicines to keep it under control, he added. AKUH consultant paediatrician Dr Arshalooz Rehman said that paediatric kidney disease is a growing problem because common problems like kidney stones and urinary tract infections are not managed timely.
To tackle this problem, community-based screening programmes for children should include blood pressure checks, body mass index assessment and analysis of urine dipsticks to screen for high-risk group who can be helped by a change in diet and lifestyle, she said. “Kidney diseases are progressing in Pakistan and inadequate measures are being taken to control this silent epidemic. However, the costs of treating these diseases burden the government’s healthcare system and are often beyond the reach of many citizens. Experts agree that we need to shift from long-term treatment to early detection and prevention,” she added.