Resource – Page 3

October 26, 2021October 23, 2021

Preparing for the flu season during COVID-19

It’s important to get your flu vaccine because the flu and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may be circulating at the same time and cause similar symptoms.

Learn more about the similarities and differences of COVID-19 and the flu.

The flu vaccine doesn’t protect you from COVID-19. But the flu vaccine could reduce flu symptoms that could be confused with COVID-19 symptoms. The flu vaccine can also help lessen the impact on health care providers and hospitals by reducing the number of people with severe flu and hospitalized with the flue.

Trick or Treat Your Kidney with These Kidney Friendly Halloween Candy

“Halloween is right around the corner, which means one thing: candy! It’s often challenging to resist Halloween candy temptations, so we’ve compiled some tips and tricks for you to treat your body in a safe way..
While living with chronic kidney disease (CKD), it’s important to know which foods are kidney friendly and which foods to avoid especially if you are on a dialysis diet. It’s okay to have a sweet tooth, however, moderation is a must.”

See the full list, here.

October 25, 2021October 23, 2021

Outbreak Investigation of Salmonella Oranienburg: Whole, Fresh Onions (October 2021)

“The FDA, along with CDC and state and local partners, is investigating a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Oranienburg infections linked to whole, fresh onions. FDA’s traceback investigation is ongoing but has identified ProSource Produce, LLC (also known as ProSource Inc.) of Hailey, Idaho, and Keeler Family Farms of Deming, New Mexico, as suppliers of potentially contaminated whole, fresh onions imported from the State of Chihuahua, Mexico.”

The Beginner’s Guide to Starting a Plant-Based Diet (When You Have Kidney Disease)

Why start a plant-based diet?

“A plant-based diet includes eating more plant foods like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes (beans, peas, and lentils), and healthy plant oils (such as olive or canola) and less animal foods like dairy, eggs, fish, and meat. Growing evidence shows that plant-based diets may help prevent health problems like heart disease and further kidney damage in people with kidney disease. Some studies say that people living with kidney disease who followed a plant-based diet lived longer than those whose diets were more animal-based. However, starting a plant-based diet does not mean that you need to become a vegetarian and cut all sources of animal protein from your diet. One study has shown that swapping out animal protein with plant protein at two out of three meals per day may be enough to provide health benefits of a plant-based diet in patients with chronic kidney disease.”

National Kidney Foundation Partners with Alport Syndrome Foundation to expand First-Ever National Registry for Patients at All Stages of Kidney Disease

“A new partnership between the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) and the Alport Syndrome Foundation (ASF) is designed to give hope to the thousands of patients, including children and their families, who suffer from debilitating Alport syndrome, a rare genetic kidney disorder.

NKF and ASF will collaborate on the NKF Patient Network – Alport Syndrome, a new sub-registry devoted to Alport syndrome patients within the NKF Patient Network, a registry for people with all stages of kidney disease. The NKF Patient Network is the only kidney disease registry that has both patient-entered data combined with electronic health records (EHR). Patients with all stages of kidney disease can register and add their important health information. The unique digital platform is designed to improve the lives of people with kidney disease by better informing research, clinical care, drug development, and health policy decisions, as well as give kidney patients the tools they need to stay educated and healthy.”

Learn more, here.

August 5, 2021August 4, 2021

National Minority Donor Awareness Month

“National Minority Donor Awareness Month is a collaborative initiative of the National Organ, Eye and Tissue Donation Multicultural Action Group (NMAG) to save and improve the quality of life of diverse communities by creating a positive culture for organ, eye and tissue donation. National Minority Donor Awareness Month stems from National Minority Donor Awareness Week, founded in 1996 by the National Minority Organ Tissue Transplant Education Program (MOTTEP) to bring heightened awareness to donation and transplantation in multicultural communities – focusing primarily on African American, Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander and Native American communities.”

Learn more about upcoming events, here.

August 4, 2021August 4, 2021

Getting the COVID-19 Vaccine, What Kidney Patients Need to Know

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Most doctors agree that the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccine for people with kidney disease at any stage, including those on dialysis and those with a kidney transplant, are much greater than the risk of serious complications from the virus than from the vaccine.

Dialysis patients who contract COVID-19 are at extremely high risk of short-term mortality, possibly higher than 20 percent.

The National Kidney Foundation, American Society of Nephrology, and American Society of Transplantation all recommend that people with kidney disease or kidney transplant be vaccinated for COVID-19.

Vaccines are one of the most effective tools to protect your health and prevent disease. Vaccines work with your body’s natural defenses so your body will be ready to fight a virus if you are exposed (also called immunity).”

CDC Urges Vaccinated People To Mask Up Indoors In Places With High Virus Transmission

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised its guidance on wearing masks Tuesday. In a reversal of its earlier position, the agency is now recommending that some fully vaccinated people wear masks indoors if they live in areas with significant or high spread.

Currently, much of the country falls into that category — with the exception of the Northeast and parts of the Upper Midwest. The CDC provides this link if you want to see the area of spread in the county where you live.

“This was not a decision that was taken lightly,” said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the CDC’s director, acknowledging that people are “tired and frustrated.”

But Walensky pointed to new data showing that while vaccinated people still account for a small amount of risk, in rare cases they can get infected and spread the virus to others.”

Organ Transplant and Skin Cancer Risk

What Patients Need to Know

“Organ transplant patients are at a higher risk — up to a 100-fold higher — for developing skin cancer compared to the general population. Transplant patients tend to develop a skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma and Kaposi sarcoma. Many patients also develop a skin cancer called basal cell carcinoma and melanoma.

This higher risk is caused by immunosuppressive medications, which are essential to transplant patients to prevent graft rejection and optimize graft survival. Because these medications suppress the immune system that fights off infection and prevents the development of cancer, transplant recipients are at elevated risk for infection and certain cancers.”

Learn more information, here.

July 21, 2021July 19, 2021

How organ transplants work

“When a person needs an organ transplant, it is because one of their organs is working very poorly or failing. Undergoing an organ transplant can lengthen a person’s life and allow those with a chronic illness to live a normal lifespan.

Many people need an organ transplant due to a genetic condition such as polycystic kidney disease, cystic fibrosis, or a heart defect.

Infections such as hepatitis, physical injuries to organs, and damage due to chronic conditions such as diabetes may also cause a person to require a transplant.

Surgeons performed more than 36,000 organ transplants in 2018, but many more people need organs. In January 2019, more than 113,000 people in the United States were on organ transplant waiting lists. More than 2,000 children need organs.

The transplant process varies slightly depending on the organ, but the need for a matching donor is a consistent theme.”

Learn more, here.