Acute Kidney Injury in Poor Countries Should No Longer Be a Death Sentence: The ISN '0 by 25' Project

Abstract

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common disorder throughout the world that is associated with severe morbidity, mortality and cost. Although deaths due to AKI occur in both high- and low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), the majority of avoidable deaths occur in LMIC nations. If managed adequately and in a timely fashion, the majority of these cases of AKI are preventable, treatable and often reversible with simple measures. AKI also has a major economic impact on healthcare expenditure. This is particularly true in poor countries where AKI especially impacts young productive people, imposing severe penury on their families. The International Society of Nephrology (ISN) has launched a long-term program, the '0 by 25' project, which advocates that zero people should die of untreated AKI in the poorest part of Africa, Asia and Latin America by 2025. The mission is to eventually lessen the high burden in terms of deaths consequent to this disorder in resource-poor regions worldwide. This is a challenging but potentially feasible and productive initiative that requires a broad vision about how the public and private sectors can work in partnership with the governments of the LMIC countries and leading nongovernmental organizations operating locally, to ensure sustainability of the 0 by 25 program and save many lives.