Kidney Health for All: CME event held to address topic of dramatic rise in Chronic Kidney Disease

• Continuing Medical Education (CME) event developed to engage with the Medical Community

Chennai, November 27, 2023: Kidney Health for All, a CME event was held to address the topic of the dramatic rise in Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD). The CME engaged the Medical Community to deliberate on ways to make early detection possible among patients in their practice. To curb growth of Chronic Kidney Disease, that is looming large and is a concern world over as it impacts all ages including our young population. Emerging growth of CKD due to unknown reasons in agricultural and other low economic resource areas is putting a strain and burden on the country’s healthcare system. The CME was organised in the public interest by NephroPlus, Tanker Foundation, Mohan Foundation with concepts developed by Kidney Warriors Foundation. Boehringer Ingelheim supported the event as part of the patient engagement programme. 

Press meet youtube video link 👇 

The highly anticipated event commenced with a welcome address and inauguration by the chief guest, the Health Secretary Shri Gagandeep Singh Bedi. He addressed the audience with insights on ‘Why Preventive Measures are Critical!’ and the importance of overall wellbeing and shared three areas of their healthcare work, 1. Encourage Healthy Lifestyle and Exercise 2. Early detection and medicines, “Makalai Thedi Maruthavam” where 10500 women volunteers on Govt stipend go house to house to check BP and Blood sugar in all adult population, send them to the nearest primary health center so there’s lower rates of people with diabtetics and hypertensive, avoiding medical complications. In last 2 years nearly 1 crores people have been checked and directed towards medical treatments prevention 3. Healthcare should take care of dialysis, enough machines are placed for subsidized dialysis and peritoneal dialysis fluids reach the patients doorsteps.

The welcome address was followed by a Panel Discussion that centered on kidney health. With panelists that included leading Ophthalmologists, Diabetologists, Gynecologists, Cardiologists, General practitioners and family physicians, the sessions were informative backed by knowledge and research. Topics such as ‘Exploring the Pervasive Growth of Hypertension and its Impact on Chronic Kidney Disease’, ‘Diabetologists and Ophthalmologists Unite to Address the Escalating Diabetic Disease Rates, Early Symptoms, and the Crucial Link to Chronic Kidney Disease – Early Detection and Prevention Practices’ to a ‘Candid Conversation on Pregnancy, Kidney Health, and the Challenges Impacting both Mothers and Babies’ were covered. Actor Vasanth Ravi, the guest of honor, highlighted the importance of lifestyle diseases and the need for change.

As part of the CME, a panel discussion was held regarding kidney illness during pregnancy and its effects on the health of the mother and child. Pediatric nephrologist Dr Sukanya Govindan moderated the panel, which included prominent gynecologists Dr Jayam Kannan, Dr Priya Kannappan, Dr Shanthi Elango and Dr Shobana Mahadevan. Neonatologist and Institute of Child Health Director Dr Rema Chandramohan also participated in the discussion. The doctors stressed the importance of screening for renal illness during pregnancy since, if left untreated, it can result in kidney failure. Following up with the mother and child after the pregnancy is essential for tracking recovery and early detection and treatment of chronic or recurrent kidney-related conditions.

Renowned Doctors such as Dr Suresh Sankar, Dr Georgi Abraham, Dr Edwin Fernando, Dr Gopalakrishnan, Dr PB Sivaraman to name a few graced the event with their presence and interacted with the invitees.

Mr. Kamal Shah, Co-Founder of NephroPlus, said "We are happy to be a part of this event and bring together leading medical experts to share their insights on preventive health care for the kidneys. We aim to empower individuals with knowledge and know how so that they make informed decisions about their overall health."

Dr. Suresh Sankar a renowned Nephrologist at Sundaram Medical Foundation, based in Chennai said, "Kidney health is critical for living a healthy life. We can protect our kidneys and lower our risk of developing kidney disease by taking preventive measures. This event was a great way to spread awareness about renal health and I am hoping we have more such informative CME initiatives.”  

Dr N Gopalakrishnan, a renowned Nephrologist mentioned that a recent study found that 52% of the CKD cases were caused by reasons unrelated to lifestyle diseases. He said, “The three causes associated with CKD cases are heat stress, environment pollution and exposure to chemicals.”

Dr Selvavinayagam, Director Public Health and Preventive Medicine, shared the government’s spending on the screening program which was nearing 1.12 crores. Dialysis is almost 30 crores per month which makes healthcare a huge challenge.

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