Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 11, 2025
5/6 Nephrectomy Using Sharp Bipolectomy Via Midline Laparotomy in Rats
Published on: April 4, 2025
Kidney Health for Everyone Everywhere - from Prevention to Detection and Equitable Access to Care
P Kam-Tao Li1, G Garcia-Garcia2, L Siu-Fai3
1Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, Carol & Richard Yu PD Research Centre, Prince of Wales Hospital, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Insights
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a growing global health threat and a major cause of healthcare costs. Implementing primary, secondary, and tertiary preventive measures is crucial to reduce the burden of kidney disease.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Public Health
- Preventive Medicine
Background:
- Chronic kidney disease (CKD) presents a rapidly increasing global health burden, projected to be the 5th leading cause of years of life lost by 2040.
- CKD significantly contributes to catastrophic health expenditures, with dialysis and transplantation consuming substantial healthcare budgets.
- Despite its severity, CKD onset and progression are often preventable through targeted interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To outline and analyze implementable measures for promoting and advancing CKD prevention globally.
- To emphasize the importance of primary, secondary, and tertiary preventive strategies for kidney disease.
- To advocate for increased political will and policy development for CKD prevention.
Main Methods:
- Review and analysis of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention strategies for CKD.
- Examination of risk factor modification, structural abnormalities, and environmental exposures in primary prevention.
- Focus on blood pressure and glycaemic control for secondary prevention in individuals with pre-existing kidney disease.
- Management of comorbidities like uraemia and cardiovascular disease in advanced CKD for tertiary prevention.
Main Results:
- Primary prevention involves modifying risk factors, addressing kidney/urinary tract abnormalities, and reducing exposure to environmental hazards and nephrotoxins.
- Secondary prevention focuses on optimizing blood pressure and glycaemic control in individuals with existing kidney disease.
- Tertiary prevention in advanced CKD aims to manage comorbidities to delay or avoid renal replacement therapy.
- Political efforts and specific policies for CKD education, screening, and management are often lacking.
Conclusions:
- A multi-faceted preventive approach, encompassing primary, secondary, and tertiary measures, is essential for combating the rising global burden of CKD.
- There is an urgent need to enhance awareness and implement specific policies for CKD prevention among the public, healthcare professionals, and policymakers.
- Integrating CKD prevention into national non-communicable disease strategies is vital for mitigating its impact and associated healthcare costs.
Abstract:
The global burden of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rapidly increasing with a projection of becoming the 5th most common cause of years of life lost globally by 2040. Aggravatingly, CKD is a major cause of catastrophic health expenditure. The costs of dialysis and transplant consume up to 3% of the annual healthcare budget in high-income countries. However, the onset and progression of CKD is often preventable. In 2020, the World Kidney Day campaign highlights the importance of preventive interventions - be they primary, secondary or tertiary. This complementing article focuses on outlining and analyzing measures that can be implemented in every country to promote and advance CKD prevention. Primary prevention of kidney disease should focus on the modification of risk factors and addressing structural abnormalities of the kidney, urinary tracts, as well as the exposure to environmental risk factors and nephrotoxins. In persons with pre-existing kidney disease, secondary prevention, including blood pressure optimization and glycaemic control, should be the main goal of education and clinical interventions. In patients with advanced CKD, the management of co-morbidities such as uraemia and cardiovascular disease is a highly recommended preventive intervention to avoid or delay dialysis or kidney transplantation. Political efforts are needed to proliferate this preventive approach. While national policies and strategies for non-communicable diseases might be in place in all or every country. Also, specific policies directed toward education and awareness about CKD screening, management and treatment are often lacking. Hence, there is an urgent need to increase the awareness and importance of preventive measures among populations, professionals and policy makers.
Related Concept Videos
01:28Chronic Kidney Disease III: Interprofessional Care
01:30Acute Kidney Injury IV: Diagnostic Studies and Prevention
01:25Chronic Kidney Disease I: Introduction
01:18Chronic Kidney Disease IV: Nursing Management
01:12Internal Anatomy of the Kidney
Anatomical Position and Dimensions
The kidneys are retroperitoneal organs positioned against the posterior abdominal wall on either side of the spine, roughly between the twelfth thoracic and third lumbar vertebrae. Each kidney is typically 10-12 cm long, 5-6 cm wide, and 3-4 cm thick, weighing about 150 grams.
Renal Cortex
The outermost region of the kidney is the...
01:28Kidney Transplant I: Introduction