WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina | Report: heart disease risk factors also increase risk of kidney disease

Report: heart disease risk factors also increase risk of kidney disease

(National) Feb. 18, 2004 - What's bad for your heart may also bad for your kidneys. New research finds the same factors that increase a person's risk of heart disease also increase the risk of kidney disease.

The study of more than 2500 people found those with hyptertension or diabetes had a higher risk of developing kidney disease compared to otherwise healthy people. Reserachers also found a higher risk in smokers, people who were obese or who had high levels of HDL, or "bad" cholesterol compared to the general population.

An estimated eight million people in the US have kidney disease. Patients with kidney disease have an increased risk for cardiovascular disease.

Researchers hope the findings will help identify patients who are at increased risk for developing kidney disease. They also hope the findings can help in clinical trials to see if modification of these risk factors can help prevent new cases of kidney disease.

The study was conducted by researchers with the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute's Framingham Heart Study and is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

posted 10:22am by Chris Rees