Kidney Failure In Men Higher

< BACK TO HEALTH starstarstarstarstar   Community - Health Press Release
10th November 2009, 09:20am - Views: 764





People Feature Kidney Health Australia 1 image

 

Me

dia Enquiries: Dr Tim Mathew, Medical Director, Kidney Health Australia Mobile: 0416 149 863 

                              Ron Smith National Media Communications Kidney Health Australia Mobile: 0417 329 201

                                  Media Alert  

                                                      

Kidney Failure Higher In Australia Men

Briefing by Dr Tim Mathew Medical Director

Kidney Health Australia

Tuesday November 10th


9.30am

1st Floor 25 North Terrace Hackney SA 5069


Dr Tim Mathew, Medical Director, Kidney Health Australia Mobile: 0416 149 863 


                               Australian men are being accepted onto dialysis programs at a rate 154% higher

than women according to data released today by Kidney Health Australia. In Australia in 2008, 1503

men and 973 women started dialysis.


Tim Mathew Medical Director of Kidney Health Australia said given the overall population in Australia where

the sex ratio is about equal it is surprising to see such a large difference in the acceptance rate.


Dr Mathew said the gap has been steadily widening over the last 25 years with the increase in men

undertaking dialysis rising from 53% in 1982 to the current 61% with the increase occurring in men at all

ages.


The male excess occurs in most of the common conditions that cause kidney failure including diabetes,

nephritis and vascular disease. 


Dr Mathew said the explanation for the large and increasing gender gap was not obvious and had not been

well studied. There is some data showing that men with early chronic kidney disease (CKD) progress more

quickly into kidney failure than women although this is balanced by the fact that according to current criteria

women have more early CKD than men.


Further work was needed to determine if the gender gap was due to intrinsic differences in disease frequency

and expression or to differences in health seeking behavior.  Dr Mathew said he was unaware of any negative

selection bias towards women into dialysis though in the elderly where kidney failure is most frequent the

decision to commence dialysis is often complex.


Men dominate the home haemodialysis scene with 73% of all people at home being male. 


Dr Mathew said “Men at high risk of CKD should request regular kidney checks when they visit their

GP in the same way people are now conditioned to ask for checks for prostate cancer, heart, blood

pressure or diabetes”


The gender issues identified in CKD and all of its stages will need to be addressed as part of future health

planning and the provision of dialysis services which are expected to double to 20,000 by 2020 with an

ageing population.







news articles logo NEWS ARTICLES
Contact News Articles |Remove this article