The 14th of March marks World Kidney Day, an important occasion to focus on the ongoing efforts in this field.
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is estimated to affect more than 850 million people worldwide and resulted in over 3.1 million deaths in 2019. Presently, kidney disease ranks as the 8th leading cause of death, and if left unaddressed, it is projected to be the 5th leading cause of years of life lost by 2040.
Over the last three decades, CKD treatment efforts have centered on preparing for and delivering kidney replacement therapies. However, recent therapeutic breakthroughs offer unprecedented opportunities to prevent or delay disease and mitigate complications such as cardiovascular disease and kidney failure, ultimately prolonging the quality and quantity of life for people living with CKD.
While these new therapies should be universally accessible to all patients, in every country and environment, barriers such as lack of CKD awareness, insufficient knowledge or confidence with newer therapeutic strategies, shortages of kidney specialists, and treatment costs contribute to profound disparities in accessing treatments, particularly in low-and-middle-income countries, but also in some high-income settings. These inequities emphasize the need to shift focus towards CKD awareness and capacity building of the healthcare workforce.
For more information on World Kidney Day and related activities and projects, please consult the following LINK.
EU4Health PREVENTCKD
At the EU4Health level, one project in particular is a useful showcase of efforts to tackle work in this field: PREVENTCKD.
The objectives of PREVENTCKD include:
- Increasing awareness on the characteristics, implications and impact of CKD at EU population level and EU policy level.
- Preventing CKD from developing.
- Screening population at risk.
- Stimulating health-management for people with kidney disease prior to the stage necessitating kidney replacement therapy, to enhance quality of life, mental health and delay the process of deterioration of the kidney function and to minimize societal cost.
To obtain these objectives the following workstreams are installed:
- Data collection on CKD: retrieving new data and updating existing data.
- Development and implementation of the Prevention code.
- Development and implementation of a transferable albuminuria screening campaign.
- Identification of existing (best)practices in all the above prevention areas, as well as identification of evidence gaps.
For additional information on the PREVENTCKD project, please consult the following LINK.
