Karachi:In our region, where the phenomenon of kidney donation is scarce, the focus should be on donations from the deceased, eminent doctor and Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) pioneer Dr Adibul Hassan Rizvi told The News on the eve of World Kidney Day.

“As many as 17 organs can be retrieved from one patient, and I believe that if one person’s donation is helping someone, then it should be made, as no one should die just because they did not have a functioning organ,” he said.

Rizvi said that awareness in this regard can be generated by civil society, community and media to motivate people to come forward and donate organs of their deceased loved ones or relatives.

Meanwhile, Dr Fazal Akhtar, professor of nephrology at the SIUT, told The News that late diagnosis, inappropriate treatment, and a lack of awareness on the part of people are the reasons why diabetes and hypertension are rapidly increasing, Akhtar said that diabetes and high blood pressure are the basic causes of kidney failure. “The simple thing to understand is that glucose and outer protein are working in their own regions, and because of diabetes, their functions become abnormal and spread internally, which causes kidney failure.”

The professor said that diabetes and high blood pressure are two of the “silent killers,” whose presence is not known unless the symptoms are obvious. For instance, he said, when one feels their head is “heavy” or when one frequently starts getting dizzy, it may be time to go to a doctor for a check up. “Even with these symptoms, you can never know until you get a check up.”

Speaking about the persistent presence of these two diseases, Akhtar said that once a person gets diabetes, it gradually affects the whole body and its system. He argued that most of the fault lies with the patients, as they do not go to general practitioners for a check up, keeping it for the last minute when the disease spreads and becomes complex.

“Other than that, I would like to say that education of doctors is important as well, as they are the ones whom the patients mostly listen to. For instance, if a patient has diabetes for six to seven years, doctors can ask him/her to get their eyes checked as well or get a urine test, to know whether the kidneys are affected or not,” he said. The news