24 million Nigerians have CKD -Expert

A health expert from the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital and a member of Cochrane Nigeria systematic review Emmanuel Effa has disclosed that in Nigeria, about 1 in 7 people have one degree of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) or the other representing 14 percent which translates to 24 million while in the United States, over 26 million American adults have CKD while millions of others are at  increased  risk.                                     

Effa who is also a consultant Nephrologist at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital  said Chronic Kidney Disease refers to progressive deterioration in kidney functions usually over a period of months to years leading eventually to complete inability to carry out their normal functions which is known as kidney failure resulting from damage to both kidneys leading to accumulation of waste and fluids in the body. He however said with adequate treatment, this can be reversible.

According to the medical expert, the damage may also be slow and unnoticed ( CKD) leading to permanent , progressive and irreversible injury to the kidneys (chronic kidney failure). Effa made this disclosure in a media round table organiaed by Cochrane Nigeria Calabar Institute of Tropical Disease Research and Prevention Cross River State.n his paper presentation, Ekpereonne Esu of the Department of Public Health, University of Calabar said low protein diets for CKD in non diabetic adults can delay kidney failure in people with kidney disease. He also observed that a diet low in protein is sometimes recommended to try to slow the progression of kidney disease.

According to him, monitoring compliance with a protein restricted diet is possible by determining urea as a by-product of the degradation of all proteins.