World Kidney Day is an annual global awareness and education event held on the second Thursday in March. Every year, national and international events are organised by kidney charities, healthcare professionals, patient groups and individuals who want to make a difference. This year’s theme was ‘Kidney disease and obesity’.

The renal unit at Mater Dei Hospital organised several activities which culminated in a fun walk from Valletta to Sliema on March 12. The week-long activities also included blood glucose and blood pressure monitoring at the hospital, a presentation on prevention of kidney disease by Prof. Emanuel Farrugia, blood and organ donation days, in collaboration with the Transplant Support Group, and a session on nutrition and healthy eating by Mario Caruana and James Muscat.

Kidney disease affects millions of people worldwide and several other of people may be undiagnosed. Kidney disease has a number of causes but by far the biggest risk is from uncontrolled diabetes or high blood pressure, particularly if one is severely overweight or obese.

Vivian Corporation is a patient-centric company endeavouring to make diagnosis and the right medicines accessible to all patients who need them at the right time. In 2012, on World Kidney Day, Vivian Corporation, through its local representation of Shire, supported the production and delivery of The Kidney Care Recipe Book. This was reprinted in 2016 and won the Best Health & Nutrition category by the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards held in Paris in 2012. It was also shortlisted for Best Publication in the Charity and Fundraising category in Europe. The book is available online at https://health.gov.mt/en/health-promotion/Documents/library/publications/kidney_care.pdf