The battle against kidney disease - 60 seconds of inspiration with Professor Austin Stack, Chair of Medicine, Graduate Entry Medical School, University of Limerick
Consultant Nephrologist, University Hospital Limerick.
Within Ireland, there are almost 4,000 individuals with a kidney transplant or receiving dialysis who have developed end stage kidney disease (ESKD) and each year 400 plus patients start dialysis treatment.
Even more alarming, we estimate that between 10-20% of the adult population have some form of kidney disease and these people are at risk of cardiovascular disease and progression to kidney failure.
What people may not know is that kidney disease is silent for many—with few if any symptoms and can only be diagnosed with a blood or urine test.
Our team is leading on a number of initiatives to reduce the risk of developing kidney disease and to improve the outcomes of people who unfortunately may have developed kidney failure.
1. We are developing the first National Surveillance System for tracking Kidney Disease in Ireland in partnership with the HSE and University of Michigan, University College Cork.
2. We have assembled large cohorts of patients from the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions for people who are on dialysis or have a kidney transplant.
3. Our team, in collaboration with the University of Texas Medical School are evaluating new and potentially modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease in patients with kidney disease in order to improve patient's survival
