Health experts identified uncontrolled diabetes and high blood pressure (hypertension) as leading cause of kidney disease in the country, reports BSS.
They also emphasized on awareness and a healthy lifestyle as key preventive measures for kidney disease.
They opined that the impact of this disease has worsened in Bangladesh, but it can be prevented through awareness and a healthy lifestyle.
Talking to BSS, Professor Dr. Md. Shahidul Islam (Selim), former chairman of the Kidney Disease Department at BSMMU and a specialist in kidney disease and medicine, stated that the number of kidney patients in Bangladesh is steadily rising, and uncontrolled diabetes, high blood pressure and nephritis are major of ailment.
"Uncontrolled diabetes and high blood pressure causes kidney ailment. Despite treatment, their prevalence continues to rise day by day. Among the three main causes of kidney disease, diabetes is the most significant," he said.
He added, "Even if a person's diabetes is under control, kidney problems can still develop after 5 to 10 years due to its effects. In such cases, protein gradually enters the urine, and the creatinine level slowly rises."
Shahidul Islam stated that ten years ago, nephritis was the leading cause of kidney disease. However, with treatment, nephritis has improved. As a result, kidney disease cannot be prevented unless diabetes is controlled.
"To prevent kidney disease, it's important to first understand the underlying cause. Once identified, efforts should be made to address it. If diabetes is the issue, it must be brought under control. Similarly, if high blood pressure or other factors are involved, they must be managed through treatment," he advised.
He continued that if the issue is not resolved, more protein will be excreted in the urine and an excess of protein leads to water retention in the body. If the creatinine level rises despite treatment, it indicates chronic kidney disease.
However, if the condition improves with treatment, it suggests acute kidney disease, he opined.
Shahidul Islam said with treatment, acute kidney patients can be normalized, while chronic kidney patients cannot be normalized and it continues to increase.
Regarding the final stage of kidney disease, he said that a kidney transplant is one of the treatment options for nephrotic syndrome (NS) kidney disease and if someone has NS kidney disease, they must undergo dialysis initially.
About kidney disease treatment in Bangladesh, Shahidul Islam said that treatment options are very limited, and kidney disease is typically treated at medical college hospitals and BSMMU.
He added that kidney disease treatment in Bangladesh aligns with practices in the developed world, and significant research is being conducted in the country to address specific needs.
Efforts are underway to understand the causes of this disease and determine the necessary steps for prevention, he added.
Professor Dr. Harun-ur-Rashid, founder president of the Kidney Foundation, stated that, like in other countries, the number of diabetes cases is rising in Bangladesh, along with an increasing number of high blood pressure patients.
Referring to statistics on diabetes, which was 6 percent in 2010 and has now risen to 11 percent, he stated that the three main causes of kidney disease are diabetes, high blood pressure, and nephritis.
He added, "Around 50 to 60 percent of patients are unaware that they have diabetes, while 55 to 65 percent don't know they have high blood pressure. If these conditions are not controlled, the number of kidney disease cases will continue to rise in Bangladesh."
Experts said that about 85 crore people in the world are affected by chronic kidney disease. About 3.8 crore people in Bangladesh are affected by this disease in various ways.
Poverty, lack of awareness, inadequate medical care, and unhealthy lifestyles are further exacerbating this problem.
Uncontrolled diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, nephritis, unhealthy diet, smoking, excessive use of painkillers, congenital and hereditary kidney diseases, inflammation of the urinary system and patients with stones are the causes of kidney disease.
About 40,000 kidney patients are dependent on dialysis every year due to this disease. Although this disease was in 1990 at the 19th place, it is currently in the 7th place. Due to the serious consequences of this disease, additional medical expenses and unaffordable medical expenses, the majority of patients die almost without treatment.
This number is almost double that of diabetic patients and almost twenty times that of cancer patients. Kidney disease not only disrupts personal life, this disease also creates huge economic pressure on the family, society and the state.
However, if kidney disease can be identified in its early stages and if awareness is raised about the prevalence, severity, consequences and causes of this disease, it is possible to prevent this disease.
Bd-Pratidin English/ AM
