We talk about the importance of kidney health and how to protect against and treat chronic kidney disease.

>> With the Lexington, the fallen, just an organization dedicated to kidney health education, and a woman on the kidney transplant list.

That's now on ♪ ♪ ♪ Thank you for joining us today for this very important conversation about a very important health issue.

I'm Renee Shaw.

>> The importance of kidney health and how to prevent and treat chronic kidney disease.

That's what we're talking about today.

African Americans constitute more than 35% of all patients in the U.S. receiving dialysis for kidney failure.

But they only represent 13.2% of the overall U.S. population.

So we're going to talk about the stages of chronic kidney disease.

We're going to hear from an organization committed to preserving life.

The organ donation and education.

And we're going to meet an inspiring young woman who is spreading the message message too.

Share your spare.

We'll explain when it comes to being a live kidney donor.

First, we learn about kidney health, from internist and the fallen.

Just doctor Kenneth offend Yea.

I spoke with him last week, brought Connick kidney disease.

And what leads to it?

Prevention strategies and treatment options.

Doctor Finney, I thank you so much for dropping by on what I know is a busy day and you re arrange your schedule to be with us.

So thank you.

>> Thank you to so you've been on this program before and you and I have moderated and you participated in and webinars for the Frankfort, Lexington, Kentucky, chapter of the links incorporated, which I'm a proud member when we've really taken on kidney health and understanding the importance of kidney health and how it affects other parts of the body.

When this airs will be out of maybe kidney health awareness month.

But there's never a bad time to talk about this important organ and why why we need to take care of them.

What do you want people to know about kidney health, that they may not already know?

>> Thank you for inviting This again, like you the and I doubt.

But unity to be able to talk about kidney, have This month is skinny.

How the awareness month and and what I want people to know because sometimes we talk about out of things.

I relate that the hype and things like that.

But kidney place, a very important role and bringin.

The bottom line in in the body so anything that affects your hot and they did that affect Geneva eventually after that, your kidney.

So when you think he'll kidney health very important, all the things that you do in temps, a few health will come to a complete solution.

So it's important to stand what has it that could mean that's because it helps all the eye guns to find Jean property.

>> And the kidney does what?

>> So did the the functions of the com main, the main function ace regulate teen you all black pressure so financed and the way we see you go in to see a doctor, you check your blood pressure.

But in that pressure goes up the kidney as it were to release some homeowners as especially one that would call reading that is able to have a black person.

Secondly, it also regulates all what fed twice electrolytes.

So, you know, sodium potassium, although since I needed for Unf physcian and the kidney is the one that's possible for red with a 10 and that what it also does bone health so far in stands we take in costume and not the product for the bone, but the kidney stress possible for making sure that the amount of constantly having a buddy it's well regulated.

what he guys is protects you Name me off and you saw it.

So what would the kidneys able to produce at home and called it a two-point and that is what course to stimulate My role is to produce blot.

So fluid balance and that's alive by lines.

Lot pressure, regulation got production.

All of this is a very important for a good at kidney health.

>> And for those who may suffer with diabetes, they need to be particularly aware about their kidney health, right.

How do how do those who are diagnosed with diabetes know how well their kidneys are functioning and is there a way to improve function and to reverse damage of function to kidneys?

Yeah, that's a very good question.

Because said diabetes is the leading cause of fat.

>> A chronic kidney disease.

And the way we look at it is for you to be diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, we fans have to know the classification of chronic kidney disease.

Chronic kidney disease is classified into Glass, won 2, 3, 4, 5, 5 being that the West.

With all my patients who are on dialysis, about the 2% of them.

As I said, a result of a diabetes smooth.

And so it's it's really is.

And one key to look out for in a patient who probably couldn't do seized.

A interesting thing is that the patients that I work with on daily basis to make sure that the Abbott diabetes is welcome to eventually have a good improvement, India, a kidney disease.

And so we work with you.

We are with and then with the old dock time and sometimes the endocrinologist to find what you all hemoglobin a one C is the improvement to him.

A little been a one C have been found to show significant improvement in chronic kidney disease.

So I want to go back to put a pen and then have you define what a one C is because that's very important.

This is a measure of your blood sugar levels over certain period of time and how informative is that?

>> That the a one C is what we >> used to be 10 mean, well over a period.

Typically a 3 month.

How?

Well, you know, diabetes says so far instance, you can check your blood sugar got on daily bases.

And you know that sometimes you get 200, sometimes you get 120, sometimes you get 60 dad would not give us a clear picture of how well diabetes, his control.

But if you go to the doctor and he checks y'all mobile been a one C you have what to tell that.

Okay.

I was 94 and 7.

So over that period off a 90 days, that is how well the issue that is spin control.

And so the the goal now is that humo been a one C should be below Yeah.

And if you are a 7 or above, that's considered it in the diabetic range, correct?

Yes, rice.

And so you'll have to work.

>> On your medications.

I swear lies, insulin, injection to bring the a one C below 7 might.

>> And so for those who have continue was same a globe in a one C above 7, 9, that means that they are at risk of severe chronic kidney damage and disease.

Is that correct?

>> So the the A one C is mainly used to be 10 mean how?

Well, you know, last year ago has been controlled.

Now, if your a one C remains, a very poor diet is about 7 for a long time.

You may have.

Damage to your kidney bed.

It is not necessarily a measure.

Yeah.

All from what is happening to your kidney is Jess, as we all of the time in how well your diabetes has been control and guests.

What happens is that if you're a one C is very high for a pro, long time for a long training and not not necessarily, especially that may be more than 3 This continuous for a while.

You may have effects on young a new kidney.

>> And so people may ask, well, how do I know where my kidney health stands and you can have a kidney screening.

And the links organization has conducted free kidney for a while now.

And you just drive through and you provide a sample and it takes about a minute to find out where you stand.

What do those type of screenings tell you?

And then what should you do after you learn your results?

Yeah.

>> So the big screen and it's it's very important time because deal anyway, sometimes we able to tell fuel a kidney is been affected by diabetes is check how much protein that is.

Inuring.

So the what we call that you're not ISIS is just a test that we will do.

And you give us a sample of urine.

check it to see if you have any blind all in the protein in the urine, in part on is checking for pro team.

And, you know, in your urine and if you get a result, there to IDA B, negative or sought a positive result.

If you get that, then do have to send you to and the frog.

The second is specialist to to do a Fed that has to make sure that that no ad that costs since that I need into the protein in urine.

Bet you have diabetes is one, right.

And so just to reiterate, if you get a >> test, then that means you need to seek further.

Yes, national health us for many women.

They may have a trace amount of blood in their urine and oftentimes that disclaimer is given to women before they provide a sample that, yes, yes, that that and that is in part time because we.

>> With defense, that's maybe we screening.

The man said we should and 2 weeks to do it again to make sure nothing else is going on.

And during that time, right?

>> So let's talk about pretty quickly about when you have diagnosed chronic kidney disease.

You talked about the stages, one through 5 and we have talked many times about the stages.

1, 2, You know, there there is way to to reverse when you get to stage 4, 5, what are you looking at as far as your treatment options available in K?

when you have stayed one 2 most of that time that will be taking care of by Joe by a primary care provider.

Your primary care provider will be able to take care of that.

Now when you Gfr, which is that the matter after Taishan rate that way, a shy kid, new status.

It down falls below 60.

Most of that a primary care provider would not or you to see that nephrologist that kid in especially us.

And now in stage 3, we tried to find on that causes of chronic kidney disease.

A new poll from may be that diabetes or hypertension, that you have.

Now, once you get to stage 4, wear your AG EFI is less than a T that adopt point.

We stop repairing you'll fall that things that you need was your kidney feels completely when you're in the state.

5, we don't want you to get to state Fife and now start thinking, what am I going to do?

All right.

So your option when you're a kid new feels completely is I do you do at dialysis, you get a kidney transplant.

For most people.

We don't wait until the a E 5 is below 15, which is state 5 for them too.

You seem by Khan's been specialist.

Was your ETF, right?

Is below 20.

We will send you to a transplant nephrology.

They have a whole team of social work on a transplant coordinator.

They also treisman kidney specialist who would evaluate you and then set you up to see if you would a qualified to be on the transplant Now, if you get to states 5.

That is when you have I have transplant or that Dallas is we have 2 main types.

We have what we call the peritoneal dialysis Payton and I this is that we would use y'all badly.

I said membrane.

So the night you put Floyd what this is all done by my son called aside there and at home.

Yes, you do that at home.

People definitely in that will do it in for a 07:00PM that you drain it.

You do Island drain.

So you And maybe about what we call for just I I bet all you go.

Try and same time where you create and dialysis process.

>> Where they control.

But that and then spinning to the dialysis machine to clean your black since your kidneys, not able to Kenya.

>> And that could happen as many as 2 to 3 times a week, correct?

Yes.

So most most of that time is 3 times a week.

So some people will be on a schedule you Monday.

Wednesday and Friday and some of that group will be Tuesday.

That's the sense I you spend about 3 to 4 hours and that's what you want people to avoid.

Is that life altering situations?

Yes, just in a couple of of seconds here, we know that African-Americans are more prone to chronic.

>> Kidney disease.

Why?

>> Eights?

We haven't been able to really tell why African American, but the numbers have shown that I've kinds are more prone to chronic kidney disease.

But I today's Zacks reason why we haven't been able to do right.

Sometimes it is sad, genetic also because we can't tell for a fight that that's I'm Jenna to prison for additions that too, because there's something called Jane put a one, Jane, Afghan Americans common Afghan make and and that predispose them to.

A chronic kidney disease, which is Scott F S G S. >> So the one of the main takeaways is to KET your blood sugar under control so that you don't reach the diabetic stage because we know that high blood pressure and heart disease, other things can follow.

Yes, yes.

Well, thank you, Doctor, Kenneth, if it's been good to see you again in person to have you here.

And and thank you for all the ways you help Kentucky patients.

Thank you to.

♪ ♪ We thank Doctor for sharing his knowledge with us again.

And now we have a dynamic duo with OSS.

One.

>> A woman he's waiting on a kidney transplant list.

She's going to tell us how we can share our spare.

Her name is Ashley Hope.

And we also have with us nurse and executive director of the Kidney Health Alliance of Kentucky, Miss Arlene Herring.

It's great to have you both here.

Good to see you again.

I've seen a couple of times at these screenings that you've been doing across the community and the central Kentucky community.

So thank you for your service and commitment to this issue.

I want to start with you Miss Ashley, because it during the the playback of the interview with Doctor you are not in your head because you are very, very familiar with the words that I don't know how to say properly.

Tell us about your story.

So I was diagnosed in with chronic kidney disease.

>> And like that, said we were at stage 3 the doctors were explaining that it probably just progressed over time.

But at that I had experienced another illness.

they came back and was likely need to look at your kid needs a little bit more.

And they caught in the net for all ages.

And so at that, the nephrologist did their testing and everything then bag no speed and said actually, you only have 15 per cent of the case of kidney function.

>> And teen percent 15.

And that was just the shack a and I said, OK, what does that mean?

I didn't know what was not.

What would be next.

>> And I was saying that you are and I was in stage 5, which is in stage renal failure.

I continued on with life and, you know, made some health changes with my nutrition.

My activity, my stress as my wrist and all of that, all the things that you read that and they share with you of how we can make this better or potentially rivers.

But at that point, it was too far for me.

It was just how are we going to live with into the next stage?

And now I want you to share with people how old you were when you got that diagnosis.

So at that time I was 2019, 37.

36.

36.

>> So young and you had a 12 year-old daughter as she was 12 at the time.

Yes, and I want you to share the part where they're giving you like a booklet 5 wishes.

Yeah.

Why is that My that's if you talked about a little bit about the evaluation process to being on the transplant list.

So, yes, I'm on the transplant list, but that doesn't come Attic.

You have to qualify you are like that.

It to be on this transplant list.

my back to is where advocates as well that I was I fit the bill be considered.

So I started my of that.

My transplant evaluation at the University of Kentucky met with that entire team to help clinical team and one of the people on the team is or social worker.

And she gave me a 5 wishes.

As we were talking about, you know, life in my environment and things of that nature and tell me when I come back, I need to have a field completed and that didn't pay any attention to it because they give you so many other things.

And that was like the last.

>> But of course, the week of that appointment.

>> I opened it up.

Well, I did not know that the 5 wishes was my plan for my end of It was then that I realized that this was serious, that this was chronic and that if I want it to be in control, I'm going to have to start now.

so I always I'm very positive with things because I just feel like, you know, it could be worse than other people have.

It is.

But, you know, worse than I do in everything's I just took it as a time to have that conversation with my family, my daughter and my parents.

Because island only chapped and it was tough, you know, and what a lot of things come about in the black community, especially the talk about death.

But I want them to know that this was a celebration.

and I want to plan all of it.

And so we had the conversation my daughter at that time given higher resources and things that were available.

Start thinking about other things there.

And I realize at plan everything else in my life when that plan that so the and as well.

Well, I'm grow wean right through this journey of being a kidney warrior, but you're still alive in your during the parents.

Emil.

Yeah.

Okay.

Which means that as doctor offend you explain.

It means you're doing this overnight.

Sometimes 8 plus hours.

>> You do it every night every night.

Right?

And that is, is that is helping you tremendously.

But you're still on the list.

Still on the list.

Use at University of Kentucky and the University of so Ed, now I make sure my nutrition is gray.

>> I'm glad I chose the PD dialysis.

I didn't know I had an option as I had to learn about all of this it still allows me to do my life but asked me to do it differently.

And I can still enjoy the one thing.

I tell people all the time.

I wish I would have considered the PD dialysis much sooner.

So I wouldn't have to struggle through this sickness and things that I was carrying beforehand because he talks about that defeat.

Talks about the important job of the kidney.

And those sleep.

That important job when it doesn't happen.

Lee's damage to other other Oregon.

Yeah.

Well, is Arlene.

I want to come to you because you and your organization does such great work.

>> And helping to educate, particularly about being a live donor.

But you also conduct the screenings.

So, you know, what do you say for people who might find them?

Stats, elves and stage 4 and stage 5 chronic kidney disease.

So for individuals that are dealing with stage 4 in stage, 5 kidney disease.

>> They have this disease to go on the ticket this is considered a silent killer because of the high blood pressure, diabetes.

And you don't know how your kid is a function if you don't go to the doctor regularly, right?

Right.

So for our organization, which is a nonprofit organization, we like to go out in the community to say, hey, we can do these free screenings and then when there's a normal, hey, you don't.

Well, you KET these your function and things are going great.

The wind is abnormal.

I like the volunteers, the board members, they go with me.

They bring them to me being a nurse.

And I want to explain this is how important it is that you will see to your doctor, This is how important is that your your body functions very well.

If your kid is a function very well because it creates homeostasis in your body.

So if your kid is not working, right, something else is not working right?

>> And you called it the silent killer because you often times and doctor Phineas said this before on this program, but maybe not necessarily in that interview that oftentimes it you, it goes undetected.

There you're asymptomatic.

Absolute right until you get to a certain point, perhaps that you've So that's important like you need to do these screenings every year.

>> I would do the monthly if you are doing health fair will be there.

>> Okay.

So you're saying do this monthly?

>> You should.

You should be seeing your doctor right away if you are already known to have stage 3 stage 4, you should be seeing someone right right away.

>> So if you're like stage one stage 2 to stage 3 or you're 50 and over like a couple of us might How often should you have regular kidney screenings?

So if you're going to your doctor, annual screening should be enough.

OK?

>> But if you have some co morbidities high blood pressure, diabetes, you may want to be seen your doctor.

You know, more than once a year.

More than once a year.

>> screenings that you The organization that I'm a proud member of Frankfort, Kentucky, Lexington, Frankfort, Lexington, Kentucky, chapter of the links.

We've worked with you all on these.

And these really are at the churches where you just can give your urine sample.

And, you know, within a couple of minutes is really very simple.

it's important to for Sometimes you do get that trace amount of blood that's detected.

That's happened to me before.

But I followed up a couple weeks later and everything was fine.

So training is important.

A live donor.

Can you give me a 30nd pitch on being a live donor?

>> Share your spare.

So what that means is that you have 2 kidneys.

Your body can function with one.

And there is one in 5 people that are looking for a kidney and doesn't have a match, though.

Well, I really encourage.

And we really promote organ I have my counterpart here.

Yeah.

Who is actually looking for a kidney?

And we would love to find her one.

Yeah.

>> And you can live on just one.

So share your spare.

Yes, yeah, yes.

Well, I think you actually in our lane I thought we had made more time, but we'll do this every year.

We've made a commitment to do this program every year and to help people understand the importance of kidney health and and what they can do to protect themselves and to share your spare, if you want to know more about what khakis what we call them for short, what they do and how to become a living.

Organ donor go to their website and they can help you do that.

And we is actually sharing our story.

Our thoughts and prayers are with her because she has a bright, bright future.

Ahead.

>> Thank you so much for watching today.

I'm Renee Shaw.

Join us each week night for Kentucky edition where we inform connect and inspire.

And I will see you next week right here on connections.

Take good care.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪