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Treatment Options for Kidney Disease

2024-03-28T21:05:08-04:00March 8th, 2016|Categories: eNews, Fact Sheet, Kidney Transplant, Peritoneal Dialysis|

There are many effective treatment options for kidney disease. Talk to your doctor about these options: Peritoneal Dialysis Hemodialysis Kidney Transplantation There is no one treatment option that is best for everyone. There are pros and cons to all three treatments. All of them work—you and your doctor just need to decide which one is best for you. Hundreds of thousands of people today are living well on dialysis or with a transplant. Each of them faced a decision like yours. And everyone who has been there will tell you the same thing: No matter which option you choose, you [...]

The Gift of Life: A Donor’s Perspective

2024-03-28T21:05:10-04:00March 8th, 2016|Categories: Fact Sheet, Kidney Transplant, The Kidney Citizen|

By Joanne Smith On August 11, 2015, I had the wonderful opportunity to provide a fellow human being with a kidney. Growing-up my grandfather told me “giving is a wonderful thing and it makes you feel real good.” He made me realize that when someone is giving something to you, they have the same opportunity to feel “real good.” I learned to be a generous giver, but more importantly to be a gracious receiver. This actually enables others to enjoy the feeling of being generous givers as well. So, please don’t be afraid to ask your friends and family members [...]

Basics of Chronic Kidney Disease

2024-03-28T21:05:11-04:00March 8th, 2016|Categories: Fact Sheet, Hemodialysis, Kidney Transplant, Medication, Peritoneal Dialysis, Symptoms, The Kidney Citizen, What Causes Kidney Disease|

Chronic kidney disease (CKD), also called chronic kidney failure, describes the gradual loss of kidney function. Your kidneys filter wastes and excess fluids from your blood, which are then removed from your body in your urine. When CKD reaches an advanced stage, dangerous levels of fluid, electrolytes and waste products can build up in your body and cause you harm. In the early stages of CKD, you may have few signs or symptoms, and may only be diagnosed with a blood and/or urine test. In fact, you may not feel sick from CKD up until most of your kidney function [...]

Basic Facts about Kidney Disease

2024-03-28T21:05:14-04:00March 8th, 2016|Categories: eNews, Fact Sheet, Home Hemodialysis, In-Center Hemodialysis, Kidney Transplant, Peritoneal Dialysis, What Is Kidney Disease|

Kidneys perform crucial functions within the body. When they fail there are only four treatment pathways available: Hemodialysis uses a dialyzer to act as an artificial kidney, peritoneal dialysis uses the body's own abdominal lining to filter wastes, a transplant comes from a living or deceased donor and palliative care is a strategy that aims to prevent stress and reduce pain at the end of life. Without hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis or a transplant, individuals with failing kidneys will die. Hemodialysis (HD)—Cleansing a patient’s blood of harmful toxins and excess fluids through use of an artificial kidney (dialyzer) and hemodialysis machine. [...]

“Transplant 101” Recording Now Available!

2024-03-28T21:05:18-04:00February 26th, 2016|Categories: eNews, Kidney Transplant, News & Events, Treatment, Webinar|

The DPC Education Center held its second education call of 2016 last Wednesday on the basics of kidney transplantation. Medical professionals from the Christiana Care Transplant Center provided patients with extensive information about the transplant process, including: who can become a candidate for a kidney transplant, the steps individuals must take have their names added to the transplant list and how the transplant list works. If you were unable to listen to the call live, the recording can be found below. Join the Education Center for its next education call on Living Well on Dialysis, scheduled for Tuesday, March 29, at [...]

Study Suggests a Lack of Utilization of Timely Kidney Transplants

2024-03-28T21:05:20-04:00February 26th, 2016|Categories: eNews, Kidney Transplant|

A “timely living donor kidney transplant” refers to when a patient receives a kidney from a living donor either before beginning dialysis or within a year of beginning dialysis. Research links timely transplants to better outcomes and higher survival rates for patients. A new study indicates there has been no increase in the utilization of this transplant method since 2006. Scientists from the Mayo Clinic and the University of Michigan studied the data of over 68,000 patients who received living donor transplants between 2000 and 2012. Results showed that while timely kidney transplants increased between 2000 and 2006, there was no [...]

Racial Disparities in Kidney Transplantation Rates Eased By System’s New Rules

2024-03-28T21:05:49-04:00February 2nd, 2016|Categories: eNews, Kidney Transplant|

Changes to the system that distributes deceased donor kidneys nationwide helped increase the rates of transplants for African American and Hispanics dialysis patients on the waiting list, according to a new study from Johns Hopkins University. The system’s old algorithm originally gave priority to patients based on how long they had been on the list. In December 2014, the algorithm was changed to give priority to patients based on how long they had been on dialysis. The goal of the changes was to increase transplant accessibility to minorities. To determine whether the changes had any effect, researchers examined transplant records from [...]

DPC Education Center Staff Member Transplant Story Featured in Television News Report

2024-03-28T21:05:50-04:00February 2nd, 2016|Categories: eNews, Kidney Transplant, News & Events, Treatment|

Last summer, DPC Education Manager Joanne Smith successfully donated a kidney to one of her patients. The story was featured in a report done by Philadelphia-based ABC affiliate WPVI. Learn more about the kidney transplant process, and save the date for the next education call: Transplant 101 on February 17th.

Report Identifies Positive News on Kidney Disease in the US, Yet Challenges Remain

2024-03-28T21:05:51-04:00February 2nd, 2016|Categories: Costs for Treatment, Dialysis, Early Intervention, eNews, Kidney Transplant, Stages of Kidney Disease|

The annual data report from the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) reveals both positive and negative trends in kidney disease in the United States. Positive news includes fewer deaths among kidney patients and an increasing use of home dialysis treatments. Ongoing challenges include increasing medical costs for dialysis treatment and an overall increase in the size of the dialysis population. Highlights from the report include: Fewer deaths were reported among dialysis and kidney transplant patients in 2013, dropping by 28 percent and 40 percent, respectively, since 1996. Prevalence of end-stage kidney disease—the last stage of chronic kidney disease when the [...]

New Website Aims to Inform Latinos About Kidney-related Topics

2024-03-28T21:05:52-04:00February 2nd, 2016|Categories: eNews, Kidney Transplant, News & Events, Treatment|

Kidney failure in the Latino population has increased by more than 70 percent since 2000, according to federal statistics. Researchers and medical professionals find that Latinos are often unfamiliar with the transplant process. A new bilingual website, called Informate, aims to inform Latinos and other Spanish-speaking populations about kidney transplantation. The medium contains fact sheets, quizzes, telenovelas and other materials in both English and Spanish. The website was created to also address cultural concerns Latinos might have about kidney transplantation. The project’s content is provided by the National Kidney Foundation and is available online to anyone, found at informate.org.

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