DonateAAKP
Kidney Transplant Today
In This Issue:
Survey Shows Gaps in Treatment Options Education
Get Moving to Save Your Life!
Educating Transplant Patients Boosts Skin Checks
Join AAKP in Little Rock for Annual Convention
Kidney Transplant Recipient Infected with HIV from Live Donor
Living Transplantation Project
Quick Links

 

Find us on Facebook 
Follow us on Twitter
 
Join Our Mailing List

Survey Shows Gaps in Treatment Options Education

Many patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) would like to receive more comprehensive information about the various treatment alternatives available, according to an article appearing in the March 2011 issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

The article is based on a survey conducted by AAKP. Nearly 1,000 ESRD patients and their caregivers responded to the survey, which asked for their perspectives on dialysis education and therapy. More than 30 percent of the patients felt that the different options for treatment (in-center hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, home hemodialysis, and kidney transplantation)were not "equally or fairly presented to them." Only about a third of ESRD patients indicated that they were given sufficient information about home hemodialysis.

AAKP and Baxter Healthcare Corporation co-authored the study based on the survey findings.

 
 April 2011 
masthead
Get Moving to Save Your Life! 

exerciseLow physical activity increases kidney transplant patients' likelihood of dying early, according to a study in the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN). The results suggest that patients need to exercise to fend off an early death. Inactive people in general face increased risks of developing cardiovascular disease and of dying prematurely. Individuals with chronic kidney disease particularly those on dialysis tend to get little exercise, but most increase their activity levels modestly after receiving a kidney transplant.

 

Researchers studied the health of 540 kidney transplant recipients between 2001 and 2003, assessing physical activity through questionnaires. Forty-eight percent of patients did not meet the minimum requirements of physical activity and 14.6 percent were completely inactive. During the study period, 81 patients died, with 37 heart-related deaths; the lower the level of physical activity, the higher the rate of deaths.

Educating Transplant Patients Boosts Skin Checks 

Providing kidney transplant patients with educational materials about the risk of squamous cell carcinoma is effective in getting them to check for skin lesions, researchers have found. Chronic immunosuppression regimens boost the risk of skin cancer, but early detection may reduce the extent of disfigurement from surgical removal and help alleviate some of the fear of return or spread of the cancer.

Patients who got a workbook on skin self-examination at routine visits after kidney transplantation were more likely to check their skin afterward, 89 percent versus 22 percent of patients who didn't get the workbook. Those who found potential lesions all made appointments with a dermatologist to get the areas of concern checked out, as recommended in the educational materials.

Join AAKP in Little Rock for Annual Convention
Little RockAAKP is planning a combined public policy event and enhanced Annual Convention for August 26-28, 2011. AAKP has planned its initial public policy forum to be held at the William J. Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock, Arkansas. We are inviting national policy, medical and academic experts to discuss and debate preventive medicine and health considerations among minority communities who are disproportionately impacted by  chronic kidney disease (CKD). 

 

Immediately following the public policy forum at the Clinton Presidential Center, we will begin the 2011 AAKP Annual Convention. Building on the successes of the 2010 Convention, we will involve specific tracks/sessions to meet the needs of a wide range of current and future patients, their families and caregivers and various professional groups. The Convention host hotel is the Peabody Little Rock. The room rate is $114 per night. Call 1-800-PEABODY to make your reservations today! Don't forget to mention you are with the American Association of Kidney Patients' National Convention. 

 

The official Annual Convention registration brochure will be available late spring 2011.

Kidney Transplant Recipient Infected with HIV from Live Donor 

Despite routine screening for HIV by live donors, a kidney transplant recipient became infected, according the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. A CDC report highlights the need to re-examine national policy on HIV tests and their timing when screening living organ donors.

In cases where the donor is dead, they are screened for HIV infection at the time of cardiac or brain death - this occurs within hours of the organ being surgically removed. Living donors, on the other hand, undergo a more lengthy and comprehensive physical-psychological evaluation. In this case, there was a 10-week gap between donor evaluation and the removal of the donor's organ. This longer gap between initial evaluation of live donors and the moment of transplant removal is long enough for potential infections to occur. The authors believe repeat testing should occur very close to the moment of organ removal to rule out any newly acquired infections.

Living Transplantation Project

Would you like to tell your kidney transplantation story?

 

If you are a living kidney donor or a living transplant recipient, researchers in the Department of Bioethics at Case Western Reserve University want to learn about your experiences. If 12 months or more have passed since you became a living kidney donor or a living donor transplant recipent, you may be eligible to participate in this study.

 

Participants will be reimbursed for their time. To learn more about the project, please contact Dr. Miriam Weiss by phone at 1-216-236-4438 or by email at livingtransplantationproject@gmail.com.

 

You can also read about the project by visiting http://livingtransplantationproject.blogspot.com.