UNIBEN Don Calls For Palliatives For Kidney Patients
Prof Evelyn Irobere Unuigbe, a professor of Medicine and Consultant Nephrologists at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) has called on Nigerians to do regular urinalysis test to ascertain the condition of their kidneys.
Speaking at the 158th inaugural lecture of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) held at the Akin Deko Auditorium, the don disclosed that watching what one eats, regular exercise, reduction of salt intake and avoiding the use of across the counter drugs among others would make one maintain a healthy kidney.
In her lecture titled ‘He Gave Them For Your Purification And Good Health: Protect Those Amazing Kidneys Of Yours’, Prof Unuigbe revealed that Acute kidney Disease (AKD) and Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) were leading causes of death across the globe.
The don noted that while AKD is treatable, CKD is not treatable and manifests late. She revealed that inadequate equipment, little funding for research, lack of public awareness and poverty are among factors militating against the management of CKD.
“It is always a pathetic situation when we see patients die of CKD at the hospital. Many of them come late because the symptoms manifest late. Renal transplant happens to be very expensive and dialysis beyond the funding of an average Nigerian. On the average, dialysis and the immunosuppressive drugs, which the patient has to take for lifetime can be put at N2.6 million yearly.”
“As it is required, patient need dialysis thrice a week, but many of them do it twice a week, some once and others only when they have the money. There was the case of two 400 level medical students of UNIBEN who died of CKD. They died one year after kidney transplant here at UBTH not because the surgery was faulty but they could not continue with the dialysis. I felt sad the day they died because their death could have been avoided if the money was there. We don’t need to loss people to kidney disease,” she said.
Unuigbe revealed that in USA, England and the Wales, kidney transplants are free. She also said South Africa and Sudan have made kidney dialysis free and wondered why Nigerian government is yet to toll that path.
She recommended proper community awareness, lifestyle modification, regular consultation, legislation of laws to make dialysis and kidney transplant subsidized as some of the things that could make people having the disease to live long.
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