The Malaysian Society of Nephrology, the Health Ministry’s Nephrology Service, and the National Kidney Foundation of Malaysia (NKF) will conduct a series of activities to support kidney health awareness campaigns.
NKF Malaysia chairman Datuk Dr Zaki Morad Mohamad Zaher said that 90 percent of kidney patients’ kidney function had already been compromised by the time they were diagnosed.
According to reports, 61 percent of new dialysis patients have diabetes, while another 16 percent have elevated blood pressure because of poor eating habits and behaviours.
“To prevent chronic kidney disease (CKD) and its complications, we encourage the public to undergo kidney disease screening at health facilities,” he said.
In the meantime, Malaysian Health Director-General Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah stated that the number of Malaysians with kidney disease is estimated to exceed 106,000 by 2040.
He said this will entail public awareness campaigns, public screenings for kidney disease, and enlisting members of the public to serve as ambassadors or volunteers for kidney patients.
“About 8,000 new patients were confirmed in 2018, and this increase is projected to continue, taking the overall number of dialysis patients to 106,000 by 2040.
“What’s alarming is that 30 percent of them are young people under the age of 45 and this could have a negative impact on the country’s socio-economy,” he said
Since 2006, Malaysia has commemorated World Kidney Day on the second Thursday of March each year to increase public awareness about kidney disease.Following the Covid-19 outbreak, the event themed ‘Living Well with Kidney Disease’ is being celebrated virtually for the first time this year through the ‘MyBuahPinggang’ Facebook Live website
