Press Releases

“Chronic kidney disease affects millions of American adults, and most don’t have a clue it’s there,” said Dr. Joseph Vassalotti, chief medical officer of the National Kidney Foundation. “That’s because CKD is silent. You may not feel sick until the later stages of the disease, at which point you may already be on a slippery slope toward kidney failure or complications.”

The groups called upon medical professionals to re-double their efforts to test patients who are at increased risk for CKD using two low-cost laboratory tests. One test identifies excess protein in the urine—a key sign of disease—while the other evaluates how well kidneys filter the blood. Risk groups include patients who have diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, a family history of CKD, or are over 60 years of age, as well as members of certain ethnic minority groups. These include African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics, and Asians/Pacific Islanders.

The groups said that the brochure they released today is an attempt to remind patients and physicians of the need for testing—and the important health benefits it makes possible.

“Two inexpensive laboratory tests may be all it takes to detect chronic kidney disease early in many patients,” said Alan Mertz, president of the American Clinical Laboratory Association, which is heading the “Results for Life” campaign. “Even if a patient already has the disease, testing and medication for blood pressure and diabetes control can help keep it under control and slow down some of its deadly complications, such as heart disease and kidney failure.”

According to the latest Quest Diagnostics Health Trends™ Report, which analyzed test results from some five million people in 2005 and 2006, the majority of people who had evidence of CKD as well as diabetes or high blood pressure—the two leading causes of CKD—did not receive the recommended laboratory tests to detect the disease. These findings suggest a failure to implement evidence-based guidelines issued by the National Kidney Foundation and other groups. In addition, a November 2007 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that the number of American adults with CKD increased 30 percent in a decade—from 20 million to 26 million people between 1994 and 2004.

The brochure released today, entitled “Lab Tests for Chronic Kidney Disease—Stopping a Silent Enemy,” emphasizes that lab testing can identify CKD early. If you have CKD, working with your doctor can often help prevent progression of kidney disease, as well as delay complications such as cardiovascular disease, anemia, malnutrition, and mineral and bone disorder. The brochure underscores that high risk groups should get tested—even if they feel perfectly fine—because the symptoms of early stage kidney disease are usually silent.

The brochure is available at www.labresultsforlife.org.

The National Kidney Foundation, Inc., is a major voluntary health organization that seeks to prevent kidney and urinary tract diseases, improve the health and well-being of individuals and families affected by these diseases, and increase the availability of all organs for transplantation. Its goals include supporting research and research training, continuing education of health care professionals, expanding patient services and community resources, educating the public, shaping health policy, and fund raising. Its website is www.kidney.org.

Quest Diagnostics Health Trends™ reports are issued by Quest Diagnostics, which maintains the largest private clinical laboratory database in the United States. Consisting of 17 billion data points, the database provides laboratory information on the vast majority of conditions and diseases affecting Americans. http://www.questdiagnostics.com/brand/business/healthtrends/index.html

Results for Life is a national educational campaign of the nation's leading clinical laboratories and laboratory medicine organizations. The goal of the campaign is to educate consumers, medical professionals, the media, and policymakers about the critical role of laboratory medicine in early detection, prevention, and management of disease. Its web site is www.labresultsforlife.org.