Nephrologists have estimated that at least 25 million people are living with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in Nigeria.
The Federal Ministry Of Health disclosed this on Thursday, March 14, 2024, in a tweet on its official X handle, @Fmohnigeria.
According to the tweet marking this year’s World Kidney Day, “Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is estimated to affect more than 850 million people worldwide and resulted in over 3.1 million deaths in 2019.
“Presently, kidney disease ranks as the 8th leading cause of death, and if left unaddressed, it is projected to be the 5th leading cause of life lost by 2040”.
It informed that achieving optimal kidney care required overcoming barriers at multiple levels while considering contextual differences across world regions:
“These include gaps in early diagnosis, lack of universal healthcare or insurance coverage, low awareness among healthcare workers, and challenges to medication cost and accessibility.
“This is why we at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social have designed a Universal Health Coverage (UCH) programme that covers the full continuum of essential health services, from creating awareness to prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care.
“As we join the rest of the world to celebrate #WorldKidneyDay, we urge everyone to join in spreading the word of the importance of our kidneys”, it said.
In addition, the tweet informed that one in 10 people worldwide suffer some degree of CKD at any age.
Also, most kidney diseases are curable and preventable.
