Media Release
Monday Sept 7th
Media Briefing Today 12.00 Noon, Monday September 7th
Hotel Grand Chancellor in Hobart
Further information can be found at:
Media Access to speakers can be arranged by contacting Dr Matthew Jose,
matthewjose@netspace.net.au, phone 0438-689-446
Media Enquiries
Dr Matthew D. Jose PhD, FRACP ANZSN Council Member mobile: 0438 689 446
Ron Smith Kidney Health Australia 0417 329 201
Hobart International Kidney Conference Starts Today
The forty-fifth annual scientific meeting of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nephrology (ANZSN) will
commence in HOBART Today with over four hundred kidney specialists from around the world attending.
The major conference follows the release yesterday by the Federal Government agency the
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) which exposed the cost of Chronic Kidney Disease in
Australia had surged by more than 30% in the four years to 2004-5.
The report revealed spending on chronic kidney disease is also increasing much faster than expenditure on
total health care.
The 33 per cent rise outstripped the 19 per cent rise in total health care expenditure over the same period.
Dr Matthew Jose local conference convener and Head of Unit, Department of Nephrology Royal Hobart
Hospital, said the International conference would collectively bring together major expertise from around the
world to share insights and information on the prevention, treatment and management of CKD.
Every day in Australia and New Zealand:
-
20,000 people are treated with dialysis or have a kidney transplant
-
10 new people are diagnosed with end-stage kidney disease requiring dialysis
Deaths claimed by infectious diseases will decline by 3% over the next decade. In marked contrast, chronic
diseases such as CKD that already account for 72% of the total global burden of disease in people over 30 – will
increase by 17%.”
The cost of treating these chronic diseases, already 80% of many health care budgets, represents a leading
threat to public health and healthcare resources worldwide.
“ The kidney, too often overlooked as part of global public health efforts, has now emerged as central to
prevention efforts.” The cost of renal replacement therapy (RRT) for total kidney failure weighs heavy on many
health care budgets. Over 1.5 million individuals around the world receive dialysis or have had a kidney
transplant according to the International Kidney Foundation.
NEWS 
