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How Transplant Changed My Life Forever

2024-04-26T15:38:46-04:00April 26th, 2024|Categories: Costs for Treatment, Dialysis, Hemodialysis, Kidney Transplant, Mental Health, The Kidney Citizen|

Adrian Ropp, DPC Patient Ambassador It was Christmas and I was home to visit my parents for the holidays. It was the first time I had traveled there in a year without my dialysis equipment or a schedule to visit a clinic. A brave police officer named Albert had recently lost his life, but he had registered as an organ donor. Because of this, I was celebrating a Christmas I had not expected. It happened (and believe me, it is a story that would take this whole article) that my savior’s family - his wife Lori and their [...]

Ask the Doctor April 2024

2024-04-26T15:35:18-04:00April 26th, 2024|Categories: Costs for Treatment, Dialysis, Hemodialysis, Kidney Transplant, Medication, The Kidney Citizen, What Causes Kidney Disease|

Velma Scantlebury, MD, DPC Education Center Health Care Consultant 1. Will a transplanted patient who receives a kidney from a diabetic individual become diabetic? Diabetes results from a lack of the ability of your body to produce/and or use insulin effectively. If a kidney is used from a deceased donor who is diabetic, it is often biopsied to make sure that the kidney is not damaged from diabetes. Some transplant patients are at risk of becoming diabetic due to the anti-rejection medications used, including the use of steroids to treat rejection episodes. Therefore, your risk of becoming diabetic [...]

Merida Bourjolly: Taking Control of Her Care and Finding Meaning Through Advocacy

2024-04-26T15:34:31-04:00April 26th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis, Employment, Hemodialysis, In-Center Hemodialysis, Kidney Transplant, Lifestyle, Physical Health, Quality of Life, Staying Healthy, Support, The Kidney Citizen|

Merida Bourjolly, President of DPC Education Center Board of Directors Merida Bourjolly had a kidney removed when she was just three weeks old, though it wouldn’t be until much later that her experience with dialysis would begin. By then, she already owned her own business and had both a teenage daughter and her mother to take care of at home, which meant starting dialysis came with big adjustments. She did her best to continue working five to six days a week like she had before, but found she was increasingly tired while styling her clients’ hair. Eventually, she [...]

For Gene Blankenship, Family is Everything

2024-04-26T15:34:00-04:00April 26th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis, Employment, Hemodialysis, In-Center Hemodialysis, Kidney Transplant, Quality of Life, Support, The Kidney Citizen|

Eugene Blankenship, DPC Board of Directors Gene has had a front row seat to life with kidney disease for as long as he can remember. His entire family has been affected by kidney disease, and he was diagnosed himself in 2003. While it has come with challenges, Gene has continuously pushed forward, bolstered by the loving support of his family and those in the dialysis community he’s met along the way. After three years on dialysis, Gene was finally able to receive a kidney transplant this year. Persevering through dialysis treatments can take a toll, but Gene learned [...]

Knowledge to Empowerment

2024-04-26T15:33:39-04:00April 26th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis, Hemodialysis, In-Center Hemodialysis, Quality of Life, Support, The Kidney Citizen|

Nancy L. Scott, DPC Education Center Project Manager As I sat on the side of my hospital bed on a cold night in March of 2004, my heart was broken and it felt as though my time on the planet was almost over. I had just been diagnosed with END STAGE RENAL DISEASE. The word “end” means a final part of something, and I thought that something meant me. I had just retired and planned to enjoy life and travel as much as possible. These dreams had come to an end! (Little did I know at the time, [...]

Enjoy Your Life!

2024-03-28T20:57:10-04:00February 8th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis, eNews, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Physical Health, Quality of Life, Staying Healthy, Stress Management|

Dialysis does not mean the end of your life! You are still able to perform many of the tasks that you did prior to dialysis but patience and planning are necessary. Please read the following tips provided by Fresenius Medical Care (www.freseniusmedicalcare.com). Talking to the staff at the dialysis centers. Writing down questions ahead of time and inform family members about changes in treatment. Finding out as much as possible about the illness through a National Kidney Association or Society, local or national support groups, written materials, and educational classes. Staying involved in the pleasures, activities, and responsibilities of daily living. [...]

Why do I need my Parathyroid glands removed?

2024-03-28T20:57:17-04:00August 22nd, 2023|Categories: Dialysis, eNews, Physical Health, Staying Healthy|

By V. Scantlebury, MD, FACS Chronic kidney disease is associated with phosphate retention due to a decrease in the ability of the kidneys to filter phosphate, especially as your kidney function falls below 25 ml/min. Once you start renal replacement therapy, there is an accumulation of phosphorus that is not removed by dialysis treatments. This occurs because of both decreased filtration and decreased excretion of phosphate in various areas of the kidney. High phosphate levels are a stimulus for hyperparathyroidism: the over secretion of parathyroid hormone (PTH) from the glands. There are usually four parathyroid glands located in the neck, all [...]

A Look at Home Hemodialysis

2024-03-28T20:57:18-04:00August 3rd, 2023|Categories: Dialysis, eNews, Hemodialysis, Home Hemodialysis, Peritoneal Dialysis, Quality of Life, Treatment|

Summary by V. Scantlebury, MD, FACS Home dialysis modalities, which include home hemodialysis (HHD) and peritoneal dialysis (PD), offer several benefits for patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). Home dialysis is associated with improvements in blood pressure, less issues with mineral metabolism, better sleep quality and improvement of left heart enlargement. It also allows patients the flexibility of adjusting their own dialysis schedule with more time and less cost of traveling to the dialysis center. However, despite these advantages, only 2% of all dialysis patients in the d U. S.  and 3-6% in Canada are on HHD.  The authors from a [...]

ESRD and COVID-19 VACCINATION

2024-03-28T20:57:20-04:00June 30th, 2023|Categories: Dialysis, eNews, Immunizations, Kidney Transplant, Physical Health, Staying Healthy|Tags: |

By V. Scantlebury, MD, FACS, DPC Education Center Healthcare Consultant Patients with ESRD have a reduced response to immunizations compared to the general population. This is because the response of their immune system is suppressed, leading to the inability to adequately form an antibody response or maintain antibody titers over time.  The low antibody response appears to be correlated with the degree of kidney failure. Despite the inadequate antibody response, getting vaccinated is still recommended and is most important for patients who are immunocompromised. Just as the annual influenza vaccine is updated every year to cover the most prominent strains of [...]

Dialysis Cruising

2024-03-28T20:57:21-04:00June 14th, 2023|Categories: Dialysis, Hemodialysis, Quality of Life, The Kidney Citizen|

Joanne Smith, RN, Kidney Care Advocate, Fresenius Kidney Care Whether you are on in-center hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, or home hemodialysis taking a cruise is an option for you. It takes a bit of planning, but what vacation doesn’t? I have experienced several cruises that have offered services for dialysis patients. The treatments were performed in staterooms on the lower level of the ship, close to the infirmary. We used a portable reverse osmosis machine attached to the water from the bathroom to provide the purified water needed for the dialysis treatments. We used jugged acid and bicarbonate solutions [...]

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