Millions of Kidney Failure Patients Die for Lack of Treatment

A new study finds that more than 2 million kidney failure patients worldwide die prematurely every year because they can't get treatment.

Scientists examined data from 123 countries with 93 percent of the world's population. They found that there were between 5 million to almost 10 million kidney failure patients who required either dialysis or a kidney transplant in 2010.

Of the 2.6 million patients who were treated, 78 percent received dialysis. The study findings showed, of those who received treatment, nearly 93 percent lived in high- to high-middle-income nations.

According to researchers, between 2 million and 7 million kidney failure patients who could have been kept alive if they received either dialysis or a kidney transplant died prematurely because they could not get treatment.

"Most of the premature deaths occurred in China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Nigeria. Less than one-fourth of eligible kidney failure patients receive treatment in these countries," researchers said

The study was published in The Lancet.



Source: Medindia