Kidney Health Australia commissioned the following reports to establish comprehensive research into the economic burden of kidney disease in Australia
The research was undertaken and reports written by The George Institute for International Health in collaboration with University of Sydney, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Australian and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant Registry.
- Economic Impact of the Burden of ESKD in Australia
Reports on the economic impact of the burden of CKD in Australia, and how it impacts on Federal and State Government Health Budgets. The conservative costing shows that the annual spend will increase from the current $670 million dollars a year, to over $800 million a year within three years.
The number of Australians with end-stage kidney disease is projected to almost double in the next decade. The treatment of ESKD with dialysis or transplantation is costly both financially and in terms of quality of life. Evidence suggests that progression of CKD can be slowed if early detection is followed by appropriate therapy. Not only can the number of new patients commencing renal replacement therapy be reduced, but so can the high burden of cardiovascular disease and high mortality of those with CKD.
Presents findings of cost-effectiveness modelling, using best-available evidence regarding the prevalence of CKD in Australia. It also reports on the effectiveness of screening and intensive management of key CKD risk factors - diabetes, hypertension and proteinuria.
The cost-effectiveness of these interventions was modelled in terms of their effect on overall mortality, on cardiovascular mortality and morbidity and on progression to ESKD. Our findings suggest a CKD-control strategy based on opportunistic screening of 50 to 69-year-olds in general practice, plus intensive management of diabetes, hypertension and proteinuria, would be cost-effective. The screening and prevention strategies proposed in this report are consistent with a coordinated national approach to chronic disease prevention and management.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare Reports
Kidney Health Australia today said that the latest report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare titled 'Comorbidity of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and chronic kidney disease in Australia', vindicated and supported the organisation's call for action on change to Government health policy on CKD in Australia. Both the Government and the Opposition need to announce policies which would fund the screening of high risk older patients at a GP level to indentify, prevent and manage CKD.
See AIHW media release - publication and KHA media release
This report found..... "Individually, cardiovascular disease (CVD), diabetes and chronic kidney disease (CKD) are serious illnesses that contribute significantly to deaths and levels of ill health in the Australian population. When they occur together, the negative effects on health status and health services go beyond the sum of the effects of each single disease."
The findings of this report echoed the comments of overseas experts who recently addressed the Kidney Health Australia International Summit on CKD, who advised the most significant way of dealing with Kidney Disease was to introduce opportunistic screening of high risk patients. Read these findings in the Summary of the International CKD Summit in Australia.
Among people in hospital with chronic kidney disease (not counting day- stay hospital admissions for dialysis) nearly 70% had at least one form of cardiovascular disease (CVD) recorded. CVD also contributed to about 76% of deaths among people with chronic kidney disease. CKD is a public national health problem which needs a direct national public health response, not a watered down program that exists in the current system and does not address the issues surrounding CKD adequately."
Preventative strategies for Kidney disease had been identified and proven effective, but are not in place in Australia. The main elements of a successful CKD program in Australia should include:
- The need for CKD publicity campaigns aimed at increasing the communities awareness of CKD and its adverse impact on health
- An emphasis on the need for programs targeting high risk groups for early detection and best care plans in high risk groups
- All CKD programs should be established and pursued in a collaborative fashion with diabetes and cardiovascular disease in recognition of the strong clinical overlap
- The need to emphasize the prominence of CKD as an independent and strong cardiovascular risk factor.
- An understanding that the task of early detection and management of detected cases was one for primary care and that only a small proportion of those with CKD needed to be referred for specialist care
- The essential need for a national surveillance program to monitor the incidence and prevalence of CKD (in all its stages) over time.
This report found that an increasing number of Australians are at risk of chronic kidney disease - the long-term and usually irreversible loss of kidney function, a new report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has found.
Chronic kidney disease has numerous impacts on both individual health and health services. With risk factors that are highly prevalent in Australia, including diabetes and high blood pressure, the number of Australians at risk of CKD is increasing. Indigenous Australians in particular are at high risk. CKD may lead to serious illness and death. In severe cases, kidney function may deteriorate to the point where a kidney transplant or dialysis is required for survival.
People with CKD are also at risk of a range of complications, including cardiovascular disease. However, in many cases chronic kidney disease is preventable and treatable. This report is the first to bring together data from a variety of sources to highlight the impact of chronic kidney disease in Australia. The information within will be relevant to policy makers, the wider community and anyone with an interest in CKD.
ANZDATA Registry
Kidney Health Australia proudly supports the Australian and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant (ANZDATA) Registry, which provides detailed annual reports and six-monthly interim summaries (from 1997 to present), detailing statistics on the incidence, prevalence and outcome of dialysis and transplant treatment for patient with end stage kidney failure. Latest available statistics are available from ANZDATA Registry website
Other useful Australian CKD references
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