Park Hyeong-cheon, Chairman of the Korean Society of Nephrology (Professor, Department of Nephrology, Gangnam Severance Hospital)
There is a ‘kidney score’. It is a score of ‘glomerular filtration rate’ that shows the level of kidney health. It may seem a bit difficult as it is a medical term, but ‘glomerulus’ is the place that produces urine, and ‘filtration rate’ means how well it filters out waste products.
If the glomerular filtration rate is high, kidney health is evaluated as good because it filters out waste products, and if it is low, kidney function is evaluated as poor. The glomerular filtration rate is also shown in the results of the National Health Insurance Corporation’s general health checkup, which is received once every two years. Korean citizens can find out their kidney score more easily than any other country.
According to the Korean Society of Nephrology, the incidence rate of chronic kidney disease requiring kidney dialysis in Korea is 360.2 per million population as of 2022, more than double the rate in 2010. This is the fastest growth rate of chronic kidney disease among member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It is also the third highest incidence rate in the world.
Also, according to the National Health Insurance Corporation, the number of kidney dialysis patients increased by 42.7% in 8 years from 61,218 in 2015 to 87,393 in 2023. The total medical expenses for chronic kidney disease patients increased by 72.7% from 1.4795 trillion won in 2015 to 2.5556 trillion won in 2023. The average medical cost per patient is 28.38 million won per year (as of 2021), the highest for a single disease. This could lead to a national disaster of increased medical costs and worsening health insurance finances.
Chronic kidney disease is a disease in which the burden of management of complications is also great. Patients receiving dialysis treatment due to reduced kidney function are more likely to suffer from serious complications such as heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and dementia than the general population.
The most common causes of chronic kidney disease are diabetes and high blood pressure. Chronic kidney disease has almost no early symptoms, so most people do not even know that their kidneys are being damaged. When symptoms such as fatigue, swelling, and urine changes appear, the kidney score has already deteriorated to less than 30 points. Additionally, a diet high in salt intake, lack of exercise, and obesity have a fatal impact on kidney health.
Although chronic kidney disease can be called a ‘silent killer,’ the test is surprisingly simple. You can find out your kidney score with a urine test and blood test, which are easy and inexpensive. However, most people still do not know their kidney score. This is unfortunate because if the disease is discovered at an early stage through regular check-ups, the patient may not progress to dialysis through appropriate treatment and improved lifestyle habits.
In particular, patients suffering from diabetes or high blood pressure and the elderly population over 60 years of age must know their kidney score. Only then can you prevent kidney disease caused by long-term use of cold medicine, joint medicine, headache medicine, etc. Also, when taking medicine or receiving medical treatment at a hospital or pharmacy, all citizens should be able to say, ‘I have a low kidney score, so please be careful.’ I recommend that readers of this article remember their kidney scores.
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Park Hyeong-cheon, Chairman of the Korean Society of Nephrology (Professor, Department of Nephrology, Gangnam Severance Hospital)
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