Important information for patients starting dialysis

Patients diagnosed with kidney failure – where kidney functions drop below 15 per cent – have two choices for survival: dialysis treatments or kidney transplants.

Dialysis is a process for removing waste and excess water from the blood, and is used primarily as an artificial replacement for lost kidney function in people with renal failure. The Scarborough Hospital’s Chronic Kidney Disease Program is one of the largest in North America, treating more than 5,000 patients with kidney disease and another 750 dialysis patients.

Diabetes is the most common cause of kidney disease. High blood glucose levels and high blood pressure can damage the kidneys over time. But for long-time dialysis patient Terri Bradshaw, diabetes was not the diagnosis that turned her life upside down 10 years ago.

“It was glomerulonephritis, which is not diabetes-related,” Terri says. “When I was first diagnosed, I was in denial until I became so sick, I had no objections to going on dialysis because I just wanted to feel better.

“I won’t deny that dialysis is very invasive, and there is pain involved,” explains Terri, who is Chair of the Home Dialysis Peer Support Group at The Scarborough Hospital. “You really don’t understand what it means until it happens to you, but I always tell people that it beats the alternative.”

For newly diagnosed patients needing to start dialysis, Terri offers the following advice:

1. Gather as much information as possible provided by doctors and nurses, and review it at home with someone you trust who will help you. Go over it together in a quiet environment that’s less stressful because you can’t possibly absorb all that information in the doctor’s office.
2. Write out questions for your medical appointments even if they seem silly. Quite often during appointments, your discussion with the doctor takes another track. Keep a log of your questions and answers, because when you’re sick, it may be hard to remember everything.  Better yet, take someone with you to your appointment.
3. Don’t allow yourself to be intimidated by healthcare professionals. Be prepared for your appointments and be your own advocate. Be involved, be in charge, and take an interest in your treatment.
4. Take advantage of any non-clinical information or support, such as a peer support group, touring the facility, watching the dialysis machines in action and talking to other patients.
5. And the most important and probably the hardest thing is to stay positive, even when don’t feel good. Without a positive outlook, it’s very easy to slip into black hole of depression.

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. For more information on diabetes, visit www.diabetes.ca.

Great reasons to check your blood pressure

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is known as the silent killer, and it is important to get your blood pressure checked regularly.

According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, five million Canadians, or 19 per cent of the adult population, have high blood pressure and 17 per cent are unaware of their condition.

“Along with hypertension, other risks such as diabetes, smoking and high cholesterol can increase your risk of complications of atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries,” explains Dr. George Vertes, Cardiologist at The Scarborough Hospital. “If you do have hypertension, there are effective and safe medications that can lower your blood pressure and improve the risk of developing problems.

“Maintaining your blood pressure is an essential part of maintaining your well being. Diet, exercise and other healthy lifestyle choices can impact your blood pressure and should be discussed with your doctor.”

Other points to remember:

1. High blood pressure is the leading risk for death in women and the second leading risk of death for men. Awareness can help you fight this illness.
2. Hypertension can increase your risk of eye damage, kidney failure, sexual dysfunction, heart attack, heart failure and stroke.
3. High blood pressure is dependent on your age, diet, alcohol consumption, level of exercise and stress.

If you aren’t at risk of developing hypertension, you should get your blood pressure checked once every five years anyway. If you are at risk, getting checked once every year is recommended.

Ten reasons to quit smoking today

Although smoking rates have decreased significantly over the last two decades, lung cancer – most commonly caused by smoking – is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Canada. Each year, over 24,000 people in Canada are diagnosed with lung cancer and 20,000 Canadians die of the disease.

“For those who do smoke, quitting can have a significant and positive impact on your health,” says Dr. Henry Krieger, a medical oncologist at The Scarborough Hospital. “Lung cancer is the most preventable cancer and the deadliest. Quitting smoking can reduce your risk of developing the disease.”

Dr. Krieger shares some good reasons to quit smoking today:

1. Cigarettes contain 70 chemical compounds known to cause cancer.
2. Smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer and kills more than 20,000 Canadians annually.
3. Smoking can also lead to other cancers including oral, esophageal and larynx cancers.
4. Exposing others to second-hand smoke puts them at risk of developing health problems.
5. Quitting smoking saves money.
6. By butting out permanently, you will improve your sense of smell and taste.
7. Smoking can cause complications with other diseases like diabetes.
8. Smoking contributes to heart disease, emphysema, stroke and several other life-threatening conditions.
9. Stopping smoking can give you fresher breath and cleaner teeth as well as a fresher smelling home, car and clothes.
10. Quitting smoking can improve breathing.

Nine classic symptoms of diabetes

November is Diabetes Awareness Month, and according to the Canadian Diabetes Association, nine million Canadians are living with diabetes or prediabetes.

“This chronic disease is no stranger to some neighbourhoods in the Scarborough community,” explains Margaret Devor, Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator at The Scarborough Hospital. “In fact, eight out of 100 people in Scarborough have diabetes. This is one of the highest rates in Toronto and is the highest rate in the Central East LHIN.”

Certain ethnic populations are shown to be at higher risk, including South Asian, East Asian, African, Caribbean, Latin American and Aboriginal.

Diabetes is fast-growing in our community. It is important that you ask your doctor to test you. It is really simple: just one blood test, Margaret adds.

On November 20 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., come out to the South Asian Diabetes Expo at CICS (Centre for Information and Community Services), 2330 Midland Avenue and test your blood sugar.

Here are the classic symptoms of diabetes:

1. blurred vision
2. cuts and bruises that are slow to heal
3. feeling tired or having no energy
4. infections
5. having to urinate often
6. tingling or numbness in hands or feet
7. trouble getting and maintaining an erection
8. being thirsty often
9. gain or loss of weight