The second edition of the Clinical Practice Guideline has been launched to address the rise of chronic kidney disease writes Meera Murugesan
STATISTICALLY, 850 million people worldwide are now estimated to have kidney disease from various causes.
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) causes at least 2.4 million deaths per year and is now the sixth fastest growing cause of death.
In Malaysia, there are more than 40,000 individuals on dialysis with more than 7,000 new patients every year.
To set a new benchmark for kidney care, the Ministry of Health (MOH), the Malaysian Society of Nephrology (MSN) and the National Kidney Foundation of Malaysia (NKF) have collaborated to launch the second edition of the Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) on management of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD).
The CPG serves to assist healthcare practitioners in making decisions about appropriate care for CKD such as identification of risk in developing CKD, screening and early detection, treatment of early CKD to prevent progression and management of the disease.
The launch of the CPG on management of chronic kidney disease is
an important milestone in the development of kidney care in Malaysia and its primary objective is to educate healthcare providers hence ensuring that optimal kidney care is provided to everyone, everywhere,” says Dr Lee Boon Chye, Deputy Minister of Health.
The second edition of the CPG was launched on World Kidney Day, an annual global awareness campaign aimed at raising awareness of the importance of kidney health. In line with the theme this year – “Kidney Health for Everyone Everywhere” – the launch highlighted the increasing burden of kidney disease and the need for strategies for prevention of kidney diseases and management on a national level.
“Diabetes is the leading cause of advanced kidney disease worldwide. In fact, Malaysia has among the highest rates of Diabetic End Stage Kidney Disease or ESKD in the world, with a staggering 65 per cent of all new ESKD cases being due to diabetes in 2016,” says Dr Sunita Bavanandan, president of the Malaysian Society of Nephrology.
Hence, the key objectives of World Kidney Day include the following: to encourage preventive behaviours, educate all medical professionals about their key role in detecting and reducing the risk of kidney disease, encourage systematic screening of all patients with diabetes and hypertension for CKD, encourage transplantation as a best-outcome option for kidney failure and to stress the important role of local and national health authorities to control the CKD epidemic.