Another Study to Find Cause of CKD Spread

CUTTACK: As it struggles to check the mysterious chronic kidney disease (CKD) that has taken two blocks of Narsinghpur and Badamba in its grip, the Cuttack district administration has commissioned yet another study to find the cause.

The study would again be conducted by Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) Bhubaneswar and Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (IMMT) in association with the Nephrology and Community Medicine Departments of SCB Medical College and Hospital and Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) Department.

The efforts this time would be more broad-based and  probe all aspects from soil, water, food and diet, social and behavioural practices, agriculture patterns and use of pesticides, use of medications and even genetic studies if required.

While earlier studies conducted by the same agencies have not found any conclusive cause for the high-incidence of CKD, the present exercise would involve more extensive exploration of the affected parts. More and wider range of water, soil and blood samples would be collected and sent to varied laboratories for determining the factors, Collector Nirmal Chandra Mishra said.

A major thrust would be examining the typicality of the disease in populace. In several cases, CKD has been found to have been progressed from interstitial nephritis, where the kidney tubules are affected. This form of kidney disease is mainly associated with medicine reactions, mostly from analgesics and antibiotics.

According to sources, use of analgesics is particularly high in the region. Medical officers have reported that people buy analgesics over the counter as first treatment for every simple ailment, pain without approaching a doctor. But there is no conclusive evidence of this being contributory factor and needs extensive examination,” the sources added.

“A detailed project proposal will soon be sent to the Government for approval and the study should be on ground immediately after the Rath Yatra festival,” Mishra said.

The administration has also decided to facilitate free transportation of patients from the affected villages to SCB Medical College and Hospital for treatment and dialysis. The patients are being covered under Odisha State Treatment Fund, the Collector said.