Women take lead as kidney donors; Dr Raka Kaushal honours Women Kidney Donors

Chandigarh, March 11, 2014: In most families, men are preferred as they are the breadwinners. Women never think twice when it comes to making a sacrifice for their husband, son or brother. The same cannot be said for the men in the family. Also, there is an underlying social pressure to donate the organ," said Dr Raka Kaushal, Director of Nephrology, Ivy Hospital Mohali, at Chandigarh Press Club here today. She also honoured eight Women Kidney Donors on the occasion of World Kidney Day and the ongoing International Women’s Week.
Dr Raka Kaushal said, “We need to show respect and gratitude to these women for their passionate ,courageous and generous act of kidney donation .We salute them for giving  the gift of life. Statistics show that it's women who are in the lead as Kidney Donors, and this has much to do with saving their families. Figures from Dept. of Renal Sciences, Ivy Hospital show that in over 85% cases women mostly the wife, mother or the sister donate their organs.
Kidney diseases are common, harmful and treatable. The prevalence of kidney diseases is increasing dramatically and the cost of treating this epidemic represents an enormous burden on individuals and healthcare systems. Between 8-10% of the adult population have some form of kidney damage, and every year lakhs of people die prematurely of complications related to kidney diseases.
“A Woman of childbearing age can have children after kidney donation, because the donor surgery does not affect their reproductive organs,” said Dr Avinash Srivastava, Director, Urology & Kidney Transplant Surgery, Ivy Hospital. He also emphasised upon the latest laparoscopic operative technique, which is known for less post operative pain, shorter hospitalisation, return to work and normal routines sooner, and improving the cosmetic outcome for the donors.  
Santosh Singh, Operations Manager, Renal Sciences Department, shared few golden rules to keep our kidneys healthy i.e. to keep fit and active, regular control of blood pressure and blood sugars “quit smoking, eat healthy, keep weight in check and do not take over-the-counter (OTC) pills on a regular basis”.
“World Kidney Day is an initiative of International Society of Nephrology, Its mission is to raise awareness of the importance of our kidneys to our overall health and to reduce the impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems,” said Chief Operating Officer of Ivy Hospital, Col. Arvinder Singh.
The kidney donors present at the function included Mrs Veena Bhatia (57), Kiran Sehgal (46), Princy (34), Gurjeet Kaur ((44), Jasbir Kaur (50) and Kiran (38) from Chandigarh region while Neelam Grover (43) from Roorkee.