Public Health Aspects of Nephrology, Dialysis and Kidney Transplantation in Bosnia and Herzegovina

It is my great pleasure to introduce to you this special issue of the journal Materia Socio-Medica on the occasion of the 4th Congress of Nephrology of Bosnia and Herzegovina with international participation that will be held in Sarajevo from 22 nd to 25 th April 2015. The Association of Nephrology, Dialysis and Transplantation of Bosnia and Herzegovina has organized congress under the auspices of the European Renal Association – European Dialysis and Transplant Association (ERA-EDTA) and the International Society of Nephrology (ISN). This scientific meeting covers the most recent discoveries in the fields of acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dialysis and kidney trans-plantation. Gathering a large number of national and international nephrologists as well as many distinguished international speakers will certainly contribute to the knowledge transferring and quality of this meeting. There will be more than 200 participants, submitted presentations from more than 20 countries. Rapid increases in the incidence of acute kidney injury have been reported, highlighting a growing contribution to the public health burden of advanced kidney disease. The sequelae of acute kidney injury are severe and characterized by increased risk of short-term and long-term mortality, incident chronic kidney disease and accelerated progression to end-stage renal disease. Contributors to the growth of acute kidney injury include increases in the known precipitants of acute kidney injury such as sepsis, congestive heart failure, higher age and comorbidity burden of patients. Identification of the underlying cause and risk factors of acute kidney injury is needed in order to reduce the severity and improve recovery of this harmful, but preventable and treatable syndrome. Protecting the kidneys from acute kidney injury should be an important health strategy for the patient and the community. Chronic kidney disease is serious public health problem that is characterized by poor health outcomes and very high health-care costs. Furthermore, chronic kidney disease is a major risk multiplier in patients with diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and stroke-all of which are key causes of death and disability. Since the prevalence of chronic kidney disease is higher in older people, the health impact of population aging will depend in part on how the kidney community responds. According to the Agency for Statistics of Bosnia and Her-zegovina, the population in our country is getting older with average life expectancy of 73.6 years for women and 68.1 years for men. The incidence of dialysis-dependent kidney failure …