Govt to conduct survey to identify block level CKD hotspots in Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Govt will conduct a survey to identify block-level CKD hotspots in the state. After the study is over, an expert team will conduct a detailed investigation into the cases so that necessary steps can be taken to prevent CKD in the study areas.In the survey, the govt team will collect information related to why people got CKD. “The survey team will also find out the source of drinking water. Investigations will be conducted by taking samples of blood, water, soil, and vegetables, apart from kidney biopsy,” said Susanta Kumar Swain, additional director of health services (non-communicable diseases).Official sources said the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) will help in this programme. The block-wise CKD prevalence will be identified. “We will choose patients and normal people randomly as samples for our study. After detecting a hotspot, we will investigate environmental factors contributing to the CKD prevalence,” said the health official.Swain said the department created a uniform format to study such cases by involving experts from different sectors. “If we get any information regarding CKD death, our expert team, including nephrologists, will study the case and find out the reasons behind the death,” he added.Recently, a meeting chaired by health secretary Aswathy S decided that a technical committee would develop simple and easy-to-understand messages on the prevention and early detection of kidney disease for dissemination among people, and prepare strategies for screening and early diagnosis of kidney diseases.The technical committee would help in the secondary analysis of data, assessment of block-wise disease burden, and modelling of a uniform protocol for the investigation of reported CKD clusters in the state.The prevalence of CKD varies from 7% to 17% among the population above 15 years in India. Over 140 million people are living with CKD in India. In Odisha, CKD prevalence is around 14% among the population above 15 years.There are 70 dialysis centres with 519 haemodialysis machines in 30 districts of Odisha. Many patients are also getting dialysis and treatment in private hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat PM Jan Arogya Yojana-Gopabandhu Jan Arogya Yojana.While Sambalpur reported 3,488 CKD cases in the last 3 years, Cuttack reported 3,484 cases in that period. Koraput district reported 1,202 CKD cases, followed by Keonjhar district (734 cases), Sundargarh district (732 cases), and Ganjam district (711 cases).