You: At Risk For Kidney Disease? Get Tested (NAPSA)—There’s important news for the estimated 26 million Americans with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Clinical evidence has shown that early detection and treatment of CKD can slow or prevent the progression of the disease, reducing the risk of heart attack, stroke and kidneyfailure. Ask Your Doctor Qhronic kidney disease (CKD) can promote heart attack, stroke and kidneyfailure. Yet, it often has no symptoms in early stages when treatment is most effective. Risk factors for OKDinclude: * Diabetes * Hypertension (high blood pressure) * Vascular (blood vessel) disease * Family history of kidney problems * Bladder obstruction. Ask your doctor about tests for CKD. A widely available test can help physicians detect chronic kidney @ tion, National Institutes of Health’s However, a new report suggests National Kidney Disease Education Program, and National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute recommend not receiving a painless, inexpen- betes and cardiovascular disease, disease. the majority of people with diabetes or high blood pressure—the two leading risk factors for CKD—are sive, widely available test that is medically recommended to identify this disease early, when medical treatment can slow or halt disease progression. In addition, according to the report by Quest Diagnostics, people with diabetes or cardiovascular disease in the early stages of CKD have higher hemoglobin Alc (HbA1c) levels. Elevated HbAlc values indicate inadequate blood sugar control and risk for complications associated with diabetes. About The Test An elevated level of a protein called microalbumin in the urine is a markerof kidney damage and disease. A microalbumin test can detect CKD when no symptoms are present, and provides information that can help physicians and their patients determine treatment that can potentially slow disease progression. The National Kidney Foundation, American Diabetes Associa- microalbumin testing at least once a year to monitor this marker of kidney disease in patients with diasuch as hypertension. “Physicians may believe that their patients are not at risk for chronic kidney disease if their blood glucose, lipids and blood pressure are controlled. This is simply not true,” says Dr. Herman Hurwitz, senior medical director, Quest Diagnostics. “Chronic kidney disease is an insidious consequence of diabetes and cardiovascular disease and can progress quickly without routine monitoring. Patients at risk for chronic kidney disease should be screened for levels of microalbumin at least annually, while those who already have CKD may require even more frequent monitoring. Yet, our data suggests that at-risk patients are not being monitored as recommended by medical guidelines.” To learn more about microalbumin testing and CKD, speak with your health care provider or visit www.questdiagnostics.com.
