The frightening realities of kidney diseases

Accra, GNA – “Health is a crown that the healthy wear, but only the sick can see it,” says Imam Al-Shafi’ee, an Islamic theologian and philosopher.

That crown is visible to kidney disease patients who are faced with the frightening possibility of costly Kidney transplant or dialysis.

Every human being has two kidneys, which are organs that remove waste from the body. Each kidney contains up to a million functioning units called nephrons which filters units of tiny blood vessels called a glomerulus attached to a tubule when blood enters the glomerulus. It is filtered and the remaining of fluid then passes along the tubule.

According to David N Adjei et al, Nephrology (Carlton) research titled “20 year trends in renal disease mortality in Ghana: A review of autopsies” which was conducted in Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) in Accra and Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi, indicated that out of a total of 94 309 deaths, 5608 were attributed to renal disease from 1994 to 2009 which was 5 per cent, but doubled from 2010 to 2013 to 10.8 per cent.

The research revealed that the major leading attributable causes of renal disease death include end stage renal disease 45.0 per cent and acute pyelonephritis accounting for 20.9 per cent of the cases.

Dr Mensah Amoah, a Physician Specialist at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency said Kidney Failure is when the kidney is unable to perform the functions that it normally does.

“The kidney removes waste materials from the blood through the urine. It is the main organ that removes most waste materials from the body. The kidney also removes excess water and corrects acid levels in the blood. It helps to control the blood pressure and helps to maintain bone health,” he said

He said kidney disease was the 6th fastest growing cause of death worldwide and that about 14-17 per of Ghanaian had Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD).

Dr Amoah said about 800 Patients in Accra were on dialysis and that Korle Bu Teaching Hospital admits about 400 people with End-Stage Kidney Disease every year, saying mortalities from kidney disease had doubled over the past ten years.

He said there were so many kidney diseases but people were most concerned about the ones that result in kidney failure which meant that the kidney function declined to the point where it was unable to undertake its normal functions and that “this affects an individual’s optimal health.”

Explaining the symptoms of kidney failure, Dr Amoah said it included body swelling, leg swelling, tummy swelling, and face swelling.

“This is as a result of excess water being unable to come out. Some of the symptoms may be due to inability of the kidney to remove waste products from the body. This results in symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and stomach pain, he said.

Dr Amoah added that the kidney also helped the body to produce blood and that when the kidney failed to perform such function, an individual may experience anaemia, weakness, poor appetite, inability to speak well.

“When it gets severe, there is difficulty in breathing because excess water would be retained in the lungs which would affect breathing.

“Severe cases may lead to coma when medical care is not sought. Some symptoms may not show up until it is very late,” he said.

He explained that the normal functioning of the kidney was usually measured above 60 and that when it goes below 15, it means that it was in the last stage or end-stage kidney disease.

“There are two main types of kidney failure: chronic kidney disease and acute kidney injury or acute renal failure (this is a sudden onset of kidney failure).”

Dr Amoah said over the past decade, there had been an increase in the number of patients suffering from chronic kidney diseases in Ghana and that current data shows that about 10 – 14 per cent of Ghanaians had various stages of chronic kidney disease.

He added that there had been an increasing number of referrals to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and other Tertiary facilities such as the 37 Military Hospital which also recorded increasing numbers of chronic kidney diseases.

Dr Amoah said most patients visited the hospital when they are at the last stage where it is difficult to determine the cause of the kidney disease, adding, “Chronic kidney diseases occur when the kidneys have gradually deteriorated over months or years.”

He stressed that high blood pressure had been the common prevalent underlying factor and that about 30– 40 per cent of the adult population had high blood pressure which were occurring in very young age groups who were between 20 and 50 years.

“Majority of chronic kidney failure patients are also occurring in young age groups in Ghana and in most other African countries unlike the Western countries where it occurs often among older age groups between 60 and 70. Some may have had pre-existing high blood pressure which wasn’t managed properly,” stated

He said long standing diabetes (high blood sugar) is another underlying factor which leads to chronic kidney disease. This has increased over the past 30 years by more than 300 times when compared to statistics done in the 1980s.

Dr Amoah said auto immune diseases also contributed to kidney failure. Auto immune diseases come about when the immune system itself can develop a disease process that affects certain organs in the body and could undermine the integrity of the Kidney.

He said other conditions that could cause kidney failure in men in the older age group were prostate enlargement (these have two types: benign and prostate cancer).
Dr Amoah stated that in women, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer could also block urine flow and lead to some kidney failure.
Another factor that could lead to kidney disease was drugs as certain medications called NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) a common example is painkillers (brufen, diclofenac, naproxen, eroxcans) which most people use.

“When these are taken for a long period of time, it can cause kidney diseases. Paracetamol is relatively safe for the kidneys if the right doses are taken,” he explained.

Dr Amoah said controlling blood pressure could help control kidney diseases or stop its progression as well as medications for treating autoimmune diseases.

He informed that those who were diagnosed in the late stage would have to do a kidney replacement treatment or dialysis.
“Dialysis removes waste products and excess water and also corrects acid levels which the kidneys are not doing any longer.”

Dr Amoah said aside dialysis, additional medication might be needed to control blood pressure and treat anaemia as well as other medications given to maintain good health.

He explained that people in Ghana usually receive two to three sessions of dialysis which can cost more than 1,000 Ghana Cedis.

He added receiving three sessions a week can cost close to or a little bit over 6,000 Ghana Cedis which most patients on the average Ghanaian could not afford, resulting in death.

Dr Amoah stated that there were two main types of dialysis: “hemodialysis where blood is passed through a machine to a patient and that there is also the peritoneal dialysis where waste is taken out of the tummy which was not readily available in Ghana.”

He said there were five stages of kidney diseases and that once an individual got to stage five, they were on their way to dialysis.

Dr Amoah said Kidney Transplant was expensive (about US$ 50,000) and even had its own challenges.

In a series of interviews with some patients at the Renal Dialysis Unit of KBTH, the Ghana News Agency was told that most of them had been on dialysis for not less than three years.

Mr Benjamin Brako, aged 33, said that his kidneys completely failed to function normally shortly after he got engaged to his spouse.

According to him, the cause of his predicament remains unascertained despite series of laboratory tests.
As he narrated his plight, he appealed for financial support from the public as well as the government, and suggested that patients on dialysis be enrolled onto the National Health Insurance Scheme to mitigate the cost of treatment.

Mr Paul Opoku, who had also been frequenting the hospital for three years, bemoaned the cost of his treatment and appealed for support.

It is abundantly clear that our lifestyle and other conditions can lead us into this expensive and undesirable medical condition which has claimed many lives and continue to wreak havoc on many.

Let’s not wait to get sick before appreciating the words of Imam Shafi’i:“Health is a crown that the healthy wear, but only the sick can see it.”
GNA

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Nigeria bandits free 15 students after parents pay ransom

Parents raised and paid an undisclosed ransom to free the students, who were among more than 100 taken on July 5 from Bethel Baptist High School, officials say

BANDITS have released 15 more students kidnapped last month from a Baptist school in northwest Nigeria, officials said.

Parents had raised and paid an undisclosed ransom to free the students, who were among more than 100 taken on July 5 from the Bethel Baptist High School, school administrator Reverend John Hayab told Reuters news agency on Sunday.

‘The students are already being released and would be handed over to their parents any moment from now,’ Hayab said.

Hayab previously said the abductors were seeking 1 million naira ($2,430) per student.

Kaduna state’s commissioner for internal security, Samuel Aruwan, confirmed the release but did not immediately comment on the ransom payment.

Dozens still in captivity 

Kidnappers released 28 children from the school in July following the release of a first group of 28 two days after the raid. Around 80 had remained in captivity before Sunday’s release.

Armed bandits seeking ransoms have abducted more than 1,000 students from schools in northwest Nigeria since December, and Kaduna state schools remain closed due to the threat.

President Muhammadu Buhari in February called on state governments to stop paying bandits, and Kaduna Governor Nasir El Rufai publicly refuses to pay.

But desperate parents and communities often raise and pay ransoms themselves.

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‘Race against time’ to rescue interpreter’s family

A Northern Ireland naval officer has said it is a “race against time” to save his Afghan interpreter’s family.

Tim McCullough served in Helmand province in 2012, where he worked with 18-year-old Bilal.

Bilal now lives in Australia but has been told he has one month to return to his home country or the Taliban will kill his family.

His siblings – five brothers and two sisters – are hiding underneath their mother’s house in Kabul.

Mr McCullough, from Bangor, County Down, told BBC News NI’s Good Morning Ulster programme that the Taliban were knocking on his family’s door every day.

image caption Tim McCullough said Bilal is considering returning to Afghanistan after he was told he had one month to return or his family would be killed

“He knows if he doesn’t go back then the remainder of his family are going to be executed. But he knows if he does back, he’s going to be executed.

“He’s got his wife and his two kids in Australia, but he’s considering about his brothers and his sisters and his mother.”

Mr McCullough added: “It (going back) is something he is considering. He would go back to protect his own family, he’s a genuinely great bloke and that he would rather have his own life taken then that of his family is testament to the man himself.”

According to Mr McCullough, a letter was delivered to Bilal’s elderly mother last week. Her other children have tunnelled under their home, building a safe zone.

Mr McCullough said it was not just those who worked directly with Allied forces who were in danger.

“Family members are considered targets because they are aligned to what the Taliban has described as British spies.

“It has been a pretty shocking revelation that they are going to murder innocent civilians based upon the history of family members.”

He said it was “horrific” to see what was happening in Afghanistan.

“I just find that immensely tough to watch and that these people who have been shown what a great life they could have are now going to go back to the really dark days under extreme Sharia law.”

North Down MP Stephen Farry has raised Bilal’s family’s case with the Home Office.

Government ‘needs to step up massively’

He said he is also dealing with the case of a high-ranking Afghan police officer who is now hiding in Kabul.

While the government has been operating a relocation scheme for Afghan workers and interpreters since April, a resettlement scheme for Afghan refugees has not yet opened.

Mr Farry said that scheme is the most likely route out for Bilal’s family.

“We had a hotline that went live over the weekend that people are struggling to get through on.

“The government need to step up massively in light of what is the huge reality of the threat beyond those people who most directly worked for the UK.”

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John Lydon has lost a High Court battle to stop the Sex Pistols

John Lydon has lost a High Court battle to stop the Sex Pistols music from being used in a new TV drama.

Former drummer Paul Cook and guitarist Steve Jones had sued Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten, after he tried to veto the use of the punk group’s songs in a show directed by Danny Boyle.

The pair argued that the group had an agreement that such decisions could be taken on a “majority rule basis”.

In court, Lydon said he rejected that deal, likening it to “slave labour”.

The singer said the band member agreement (BMA) had never been adhered to and that requests for licenses had previously been subject to individual members’ vetoes.

However, a judge ruled on Monday that the contract was valid and active, and that the majority of the band could overrule any individual member’s veto.

The judge, Sir Anthony Mann, also noted that Mr Lydon “had actually signed away his power to control the use of music rights” to publishing and music companies such as Warner Chappell Music and BMG.

Lydon retained “only qualified rights of approval which could be overridden if he was being unreasonable”, the judge said.

“It may be that those companies, for their own reasons, chose to seek his permission from time to time, but ultimately they could act as they saw fit.”

In a joint statement after the ruling, Jones and Cook told the Press Association: “We welcome the court’s ruling in this case. It brings clarity to our decision-making and upholds the band members’ agreement on collective decision-making.

“It has not been a pleasant experience, but we believe it was necessary to allow us to move forward and hopefully work together in the future with better relations.”

image caption The Sex Pistols L-R: Steve Jones John Lydon, Glen Matlock and Paul Cook, pictured in 2002

The TV drama, simply called Pistol, began filming in March. It is described as a six-part series based on Jones’s 2016 memoir, Lonely Boy: Tales from a Sex Pistol.

It is being directed by Slumdog Millionaire’s Danny Boyle who, according to court documents, previously persuaded Lydon to let him use the Sex Pistols’ music in the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics.

However, Lydon’s lawyer claimed the show, which is being made by Disney for its FX channel, would portray the singer in “a hostile and unflattering light”.

Addressing the court last month, Lydon said: “I care very much about this band and its reputation and its quality control and I will always have a say if I think anything is being done to harm or damage [it].”

Lawyers for Mr Cook and Mr Jones argued there should not be any dispute about whether the agreement allows licensing decisions to be made “by a majority” and said Mr Lydon was in breach of the BMA by refusing to provide his consent.

‘Difficult relationships’

The Sex Pistols formed 1975, releasing singles such as Anarchy In The UK and Pretty Vacant, before splitting up in 1978. But they have performed live shows together a number of times since then, most recently in 2008.

In his written judgement, handed down remotely on Monday, Mr Justice Mann noted that: “Relationships between band members have always been strained, even going back to the days when the band was performing.

“Mr Lydon has not shrunk from describing his difficult relationships with the other members… and that has persisted even through their comeback tours in the 1990s and 2000s. It persists today.”

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UK cannot stay alone – minister says

The mission to evacuate people from Afghanistan to the UK “has to come to an end” when US troops withdraw, the armed forces minister has said.

James Heappey said the UK was working to a deadline of 31 August, when the US is set to leave – though the prime minister is expected to ask President Joe Biden for more time.

Evacuations are also dependent on Taliban co-operation, Mr Heappey added.

But he added the UK was “taking nothing for granted” with the militants.

Boris Johnson will ask Mr Biden to extend the deadline for withdrawing US troops at an emergency gathering of world leaders from the G7 countries on Tuesday, in order to allow evacuation flights to continue.

Thousands of people are said to be waiting to board flights at Kabul’s international airport, just over a week after the Taliban seized the capital.

Mr Heappey told BBC Breakfast that 6,631 people had been evacuated to the UK in the past week, and there would be nine flights over the next 24 hours.

He said this would not be possible without the US, which “has effectively taken over the full operation” at the airport.

“If there is no opportunity to extend [the deadline] – either because there’s not the international appetite to do so, or perhaps more likely the Taliban are unwilling to allow us to – then we need to continue with our plans to be out by 31 August,” he said.

“If that is to be the case, every minute counts to get as many people out in the meantime.”

Later, on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said “the period of time it would take to get in place a replacement force is not realistic”.

He added that the Taliban also “gets a vote” on whether evacuations continue after August, and that “apparently they’ve indicated that they wouldn’t be” supportive of an extension.

The Foreign Office said it had sent five additional members of staff to Kabul to help with the evacuation, bringing the total number of its staff there to 19.

Gogglebox star Mary Cook dies aged 92

Gogglebox star Mary Cook, known for her appearances with friend Marina Wingrove, has died at the age of 92, Channel 4 has said.

The cheeky Bristolian pair were among the most popular members of the TV review show’s line-up.

A statement issued by Channel 4 and producers Studio Lambert on behalf of her family said they were “extremely saddened” to share the news.

She died in hospital at the weekend with her family by her side, it said.

“Beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and dear friend to many, Mary, who worked in the hospitality trade, had been married and widowed twice.”

The pair “became instant fan favourites due to their brilliantly witty and often cheeky moments”, the statement added.

“Mary will be sorely missed by the entire Gogglebox family, cast and crew.

“Our love and thoughts are with Mary’s family, friends, and Marina. The family have asked for privacy at this sad time.”

‘Having a laugh’

Cook and Wingrove joined the show, which features members of the public reacting the week’s TV highlights, in 2016 after Wingrove was approached by a researcher outside an Asda supermarket.

“Then she said, ‘Have you got a friend?’ And like that, Mary came round the corner on her scooter.”

Cook added: “They came up to Marina’s flat, held cards up of different famous people and we had to talk about them.”

In an interview posted on the website of their retirement home the year after their made their debuts, Cook said: “We’re just talking to each other and having a laugh, aren’t we?

“We do say some cheeky things, but they don’t always put them on the show.”

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COVID-19: LUANDA REMAINS UNDER CORDON SANITAIRE

Luanda - The government on Friday announced the maintenance of the sanitary fence over the province of Luanda, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, during the whole month of August.

The fact was announced by the Minister of State and Head of the Security House of the President of the Republic, Francisco Pereira Furtado, at the press conference for the presentation of the new Presidential Decree, which updates the measures on the Public Calamity Situation.

The hospital of the country has been under a sanitary regime since March 2020, when the first cases of Covid-19 were detected in the country.

Markets are now open every day of the week, while gyms, indoors, open Sunday at 50 per cent capacity.