[How to manage chronic kidney disease in the elderly?]

From age 30 onwards, kidney function physiologically decreases although this deterioration cannot yet be called chronic kidney disease. The latter appears in those exposed to cardiovascular risk factors associated with inflammation and oxidative stress. A diffuse atherosclerosis then develops Patients with a decreased glomerular filtration rate, especially below the threshold of 45 ml/min, are characterised by a poor physical heath and by cognitive disorders, leading to frailty. In these conditions, a management strategy to reduce the increased risk of acute kidney injury should be outlined and the need for renal replacement therapy be considered. One must try to maintain the best possible quality of life, promoting in some situations a conservative approach.