Breaking News

El Salvador Experiencing Mysterious Kidney Disease
Download PDF
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (No Ratings Yet)
Loading...

The Pacific coast of Central America is suffering through an epidemic that is incredibly mysterious to experts. The epidemic has killed over 24,000 people in El Salvador and Nicaragua since the year 2000 and has infected thousands of more people by causing kidney problems at a rate that has not been seen anywhere else. Reports of this problem have been made in Panama and in Mexico.

Dr. Maria Isabel Rodriguez, the health minister for El Salvador, asked for international help last year because she said the epidemic was not being solved by traditional health programs.

  
What
Where


Wilfredo Ordonez worked for 30 years in Bajo Lempa in El Salvador. He was struck with the mysterious disease ten years ago and now gives himself dialysis treatment four times per day.

“This is a disease that comes with no warning, and when they find it, it’s too late,” Ordonez said.

The majority of those affected by the disease have been manual workers or those who worked in the sugar cane fields. Doctors and other experts in the area feel that the chemicals used on agriculture are to blame for the problems. These chemicals have been used for years and are not subjected to the same protections and tests that more developed countries require.

Get JD Journal in Your Mail

Subscribe to our FREE daily news alerts and get the latest updates on the most happening events in the legal, business, and celebrity world. You also get your daily dose of humor and entertainment!!




Another theory, which is becoming the most popular one, involves hours of labor in extreme heat with not enough hydration. The workers affected by the epidemic work hours on end in blazing temperatures without proper hydration, which pushes the body to the extreme.

“The thing that evidence most strongly points to is this idea of manual labor and not enough hydration,” said Daniel Brooks, a professor of epidemiology at Boston University’s School of Public Health.



There are experts who will not rule out manmade causes because long hours and intense heat are not unknown to the region of Central America.

“I think that everything points away from pesticides,” said Dr. Catharina Wesseling. Wesseling is an occupational and environmental epidemiologist. Wesseling is the regional director of the Program on Work, Health and Environment in Central America. “It is too multinational; it is too spread out. I would place my bet on repeated dehydration, acute attacks everyday. That is my bet, my guess, but nothing is proved.”

A University of Colorado kidney specialist, Dr. Richard J. Johnson, is working to find a cause of the disease. He does believe that it could be dehydration.

“This is a new concept, but there’s some evidence supporting it,” Johnson said. “There are other ways to damage the kidney. Heavy metals, chemicals, toxins have all been considered, but to date there have been no leading candidates to explain what’s going on in Nicaragua. As these possibilities get exhausted, recurrent dehydration is moving up on the list.”

In 2000, there were 466 deaths related to kidney disease in Nicaragua. In 2010, that number jumped to 1,047. El Salvador saw 1,282 deaths in 2000 and then 2,181 deaths in 2010.



 

RELEVANT JOBS

Associate Attorney

USA-PA-Exton

ASSOCIATE ATTORNEY McKenna Snyder LLC, a law firm in Exton, PA has an immediate opening for an ex...

Apply now

Attorney

USA-MI-Sturgis

Qualifications: HaasCaywood is seeking associate attorneys for our Coldwater and Sturgis, Michiga...

Apply now

Attorney

USA-MI-Coldwater

Qualifications: HaasCaywood is seeking associate attorneys for our Coldwater and Sturgis, Michiga...

Apply now

Deputy General Counsel / Senior Deputy General Counsel

USA-CA-Sacramento

Cal Cities Culture and Mission Cal Cities is dedicated to creating a collaborative and inclusive ...

Apply now

BCG FEATURED JOB

Locations:

Keyword:



Search Now

Education Law Attorney

USA-CA-El Segundo

El Segundo office of a BCG Attorney Search Top Ranked Law Firm seeks an education law attorney with ...

Apply Now

Education Law Attorney

USA-CA-Carlsbad

Carlsbad office of a BCG Attorney Search Top Ranked Law Firm seeks an education law attorney with 4-...

Apply Now

Education Law and Public Entity Attorney

USA-CA-El Segundo

El Segundo office of a BCG Attorney Search Top Ranked Law Firm seeks an education law and public ent...

Apply Now

Most Popular

SEARCH IN ARCHIVE

To Top