On Dialysis? Aerobic Exercise is Key for Positive Physical & Mental Health

Living with Dialysis

From Science 2.0, Science Blogging

Exercise Linked With Improved Physical And Mental Health Among Dialysis Patients

Washington, DC (October 2, 2014) — Aerobic physical activity is strongly linked with better health-related quality of life, fewer depressive symptoms, and prolonged life in kidney failure patients on dialysis. The findings, which come from a study appearing in an upcoming issue of theClinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN), suggest that dialysis facilities have an opportunity to improve patients' health by providing exercise programs.

Physical activity can provide a number of benefits for diverse populations, but its effects in patients on hemodialysis patients are unclear. To investigate, Antonio Alberto Lopes, MD, PhD (Federal University of Bahia, in Brazil), Ronald Pisoni, PhD, MS (Arbor Research for Collaborative Health), and their colleagues studied 5763 patients enrolled in the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study. Patients were classified into 5 aerobic physical activity categories (never/rarely active to very active) and according to muscle strength/flexibility activity using the Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity questionnaire.

Among the major findings:

After a median follow-up of 1.6 years, aerobic activity, but not strength/flexibility activity, was linked positively with health-related quality of life and inversely with depressive symptoms and premature death, with those who were very active being 40% less likely to die during follow-up than those who were never/rarely active.

Similar associations with aerobic activity were observed in subgroups defined by age, sex, time on dialysis, and diabetes status.

In dialysis patients with heart failure, aerobic activity was not linked with prolonged survival, but was associated positively with health-related quality of life and inversely with depressive symptoms.

"In addition, aerobic physical activity levels were found to be higher for patients treated in dialysis units offering an exercise program compared with units not offering an exercise program, pointing to the possibility to improve patient physical activity levels through greater availability of such programs for hemodialysis patients," said Dr. Lopes. "Our results call attention to opportunities for potentially improving the health of patients on hemodialysis through counseling for physical activity and the promotion of exercise programs in nephrology clinics." [Read more]



From Western News, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada, By Paul Mayne
'Cool' idea may help dialysis patients

A simple step developed by a Western researcher may alleviate the potential damage to multiple organs often associated with dialysis, an important treatment for countless patients with kidney disease.

Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry Professor Chris McIntyre, who arrived from the University of Nottingham last month, said kidney disease patients are caught between a rock and a hard place – they cannot live with or without dialysis.

“Patients die a lot. Your chances of dying on dialysis are about the same as with every single kind of cancer,” said McIntyre, the Robert Lindsay Chair of Dialysis Research and Innovation. “Those who do survive suffer substantial injury that appears to be related to the treatment. It can damage their hearts and other organs, but we’re now starting to appreciate they’re damaging their brain as well.”

Prior to coming to Western, McIntyre and his colleagues studied 73 patients on hemodialysis (where blood is filtered through a machine) where the dialysate was cooled and followed up with them for a year. The findings, published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, showed patients exhibited complete protection against white matter changes in the brain.

“We’ve done a lot of work relating to how the blood pressure, being unstable when you take the fluid off on dialysis, drives that injury,” McIntyre said of patients who normally face a severe drop in blood pressure due to the sudden removal of bodily fluids. “We looked around for techniques that were already established in dialysis to improve the blood pressure and stop these drops, and cooling has been used since the late 1980s.

“So, we applied a technique already available and wanted to see whether or not we’re not just making people feel better, but we can actually get organ protection.”

The technique involves cooling the dialysate temperature to either 37 degrees C, or .5 degrees C below the core body temperature. By doing so, patients were completely protected against blood pressure changes. [Read more]

Gift of Life

From KOB.com Channel 4, Albuquerque, NM

Albuquerque man donates kidney to stranger after seeing Facebook post

An Albuquerque man is calling it a miracle. A complete stranger saw his plea for a kidney donor on Facebook, and after going through several tests, they found out he was a match and is now ready for surgery.

"Am I going to see my family again and am I going to have another Christmas with my family?" Matthew Aguilar asked. "It was just hard "

Aguilar, 39, is battling polycystic kidney disease. While a healthy kidney is the size of a fist, Aguilar's are the size of footballs, swelling with cists and leaving him feeling like he has the flu every day.

"Once my kidneys fail, I only have like two weeks to live, " Aguilar said.

Matthew and his wife Crystal are frequent volunteers at their children's schools on Albuquerque's west side. They help with everything from fixing computers, to serving up lunch in the cafeteria.

After giving back to their community, they put out a plea of their own.

They got a little help from our very own Steve Stucker, who shared the post on Facebook. It was shared all over the world, including places like the Philippines. And finally, Aguilar's prayers were answered.

"If I could save his life, I was willing to sacrifice whatever I had to go through, in order to help him out," Adam Gallegos said.

Gallegos, who lives in Albuquerque, saw the post and decided to get tested. Turns out, he was a perfect match. He met Matthew and instantly made a connection with him and his family. They say they're like brothers now.

The men hope their story inspires others. [Read more]

From Sandpaper.net, Eagleswood, NJ

Spaghetti Dinner to Aid Eagleswood Fireman in Need of Kidney Donor

Since being diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease a few years back, Allan Herdecker of Tuckerton has had an increasingly difficult time managing his health, work and medical expenses. Earlier this year, he had to give up a 26-year career at ShopRite of Manahawkin.

PKD causes fluid-filled cysts to form in the kidneys, which can impair kidney function and lead to kidney failure, as in Herdecker’s case. Three days a week, the 45-year-old fisherman and NASCAR enthusiast drives to and from Saint Barnabas Medical Center to receive dialysis treatments to filter toxins from his blood, while he awaits a lifesaving gift from a living kidney donor. A kidney from a living donor has a higher long-term success rate than a cadaver organ, for which the wait is four to six years.

Now his co-workers and friends have organized a spaghetti dinner fundraiser in his honor, Saturday, Oct. 25, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Eagleswood Volunteer Fire Co. Herdecker is a member of both the Eagleswood Volunteer Fire Co. and the N.J. State Forest Fire Service. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for kids, and includes music, games, face painting, raffle drawings and a gift auction.

Additional contributions to offset his medical expenses can be made to his IndieGogo campaign: visit indiegogo.com and search his name. To learn more about Herdecker and how to help, visit facebook.com/akidneyforAllan. —V.F.

PKD Research

From MarketWatch.com, BusinessWire, Press Release

DiscoveryBioMed, Inc. Awarded Dual SBIR Awards for Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) Drug Discovery, Validation, Optimization and Development

ST. LOUIS, Oct 07, 2014 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- DiscoveryBioMed, Inc. (DBM, Inc.) learned in recent months that it was awarded a new Phase 1 SBIR grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to perform high-throughput screening (HTS)-based drug discovery and validation to discover novel small molecules that attack the secondary phase of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). Concomitant with this news, DBM, Inc. was also approved to proceed with the Phase 2 portion of a Fast Track SBIR-funded program funded by the NIH to develop a new chemical series into a new chemical entity (NCE) and future drug to fight the initial phases of ADPKD. New future drugs from these dual programs may also have utility in attenuating secretory diarrhea and renal, urologic and other forms of cancer and fibrosis, respectively. The Phase 2 portion of the Fast Track SBIR award also continues to fund a collaboration with the Baltimore PKD Center who is conducting and will continue to conduct proof-of-concept studies in vivo in multiple and different genetic mouse models of ADPKD. Dr. Terry Watnick, M.D. is a Professor of Medicine and the Director of the Baltimore PKD Center based at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD. She is a dual PI on the SBIR award and is directing these studies along with Dr. David Huso, DVM, Ph.D. at Johns Hopkins who is Director of Mouse Models and Biobank Core C of the Baltimore PKD Center.

Both SBIR awards were granted by the NIH’s National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). “DBM is very grateful for the continued support from the NIDDK. Without their grant support and without a vigorous commitment to funding applied and translational research, our efforts would stall and not have acceleration. We are truly humbled by the NIDDK’s funding and guidance,” Dr. Schwiebert pointed out. The new Phase 1 SBIR award also has Dr. Deborah Mai as a dual PI leading the biological assay efforts and Dr. John Streiff continuing to collaborate with chemistry expertise. [Read more]