American Kidney Fund Brings Kidney Health Education to All During Fourth Annual Virtual Kidney Action Week on March 20-24

ROCKVILLE, Md. (March 20, 2023)  — Today marks the beginning of the American Kidney Fund's (AKF) fourth annual Kidney Action Week, a free, week-long virtual event dedicated to educating the community on all matters related to kidney health. Kidney Action Week occurs as AKF continues to recognize Kidney Month, a time of unity and action on behalf of all those affected by kidney disease.

Approximately 37 million Americans have kidney disease and 9 out of 10 people with early-stage kidney disease are unaware they have it. Kidney Action Week provides critical information about risk factors for developing kidney disease, signs and symptoms, testing, how to stop or slow kidney damage, maintaining a kidney-friendly diet and more. This year, AKF has expanded the type of sessions held at Kidney Action Week, with each day dedicated to kidney health-related theme, featuring multiple hour-long education sessions and interactive events that will help participants put teachings into action.

"As the fastest-growing noncontagious disease in the United States, kidney disease is a major public health concern and needs to be treated as such," said LaVarne A. Burton, AKF President and CEO. "Currently, more 1 in 7 American adults have kidney disease, and more than 800,000 people in the United States live with kidney failure. These are truly alarming numbers that demand our urgent attention. We're grateful to all the doctors, experts and advocates for providing their insight, knowledge and expertise during Kidney Action Week to help us address this crisis and help people with kidney disease live fully."

On March 23, AKF will also host a Congressional briefing, "Upstream Solutions to Kidney Disease: Diabetes and High Blood Pressure Prevention and Management," with featured speaker U.S. Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr. (NJ-10), who lives with kidney disease and advocates for kidney patients. Panelists include an AKF ambassador, as well as a cardiologist, endocrinologist and advocates from the American Heart Association and Endocrine Society. The goal of this session is to educate policymakers on how addressing diabetes and high blood pressure – the two leading causes of kidney disease – can reduce the number of people with kidney failure.

Kidney Action Week will cover topics such as healthy eating, medical treatments for kidney disease, living donor transplantation, dialysis and mental well-being. Sessions include, but are not limited to:

Monday, March 20: CKD 101

• I Was Just Diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease: What Are My Next Steps? – 2:30 p.m. ET
• Advancements in Medical Therapies for Diabetic Kidney Disease – 4 p.m. ET
• Do You Know the Real Cause of Your Kidney Disease? Why It Is Important You Know and How to Find Out – 7 p.m. ET

Tuesday, March 21: Treatments

• How to Find a Living Donor, featuring kidney transplant recipients and donors – 2:15 p.m. ET
• Itchy skin (pruritus), Weight Gain, and Restless Leg Syndrome: Managing Common Side Effects of Dialysis – 3:45 p.m. ET
• The Dialysis Care Team: Meet the Key Players in Your Healthcare – 5:15 p.m. ET

Wednesday, March 22: Nutrition and Wellness

• Eating Through the CKD Stages – 12:45 p.m. ET
• Experiencing Grief with Kidney Disease – 2:15 p.m. ET
• Integrating Exercise into Life with Kidney Disease – 3:45 p.m. ET

Thursday, March 23: Patient Experience

• Upstream Solutions to Kidney Disease: Diabetes and High Blood Pressure Prevention and Management (Congressional Briefing, open to all) - 2:15 p.m. ET
• Family Planning and Kidney Disease – 3:45 p.m. ET
• Kidney Disease at Different Life Stages – 5:15 p.m. ET

Friday, June 10: Advancements

• Health Inequities Through the Transplant and Donation Process – 10:45 a.m. ET
• Clinical Trials: Why Your Participation Can Lead to Advancements in Kidney Disease – 11:50 a.m. ET
• Innovations in Kidney Disease Treatments – 1 p.m. ET

For the full Kidney Action Week schedule of events, additional details and registration information, visit KidneyActionWeek.org.

Kidney Action Week is part of AKF's Know Your Kidneys™ kidney disease education and prevention program.

Kidney Action Week is possible thanks to the support of our Presenting Sponsors Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly and Company; Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. and U.S. Renal Care, Inc. Additional support is being provided by Program Sponsors Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation and Travere Therapeutics, Inc.; and Session Sponsors Aurinia Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Satellite Healthcare.