U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Improving the understanding, detection, and management of kidney disease.
Learn about the two recommended tests for kidney disease.
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Learn about diet and lifestyle changes to help you live a healthier and longer life.
Learn MoreManagement of CKD involves an interdisciplinary approach. Monitoring trends in urine albumin-to-creatinine ratios (UACR) and estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFR) may be used to assess response to interventions. Medical interventions that may help slow progression include control of blood pressure, use of medications that block the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) to lower urine albumin; and glucose control in those with diabetes. Interventions may include nutrition therapy, lifestyle modification, and self-management education.
Identification and treatment of CKD complications may help improve quality of life. Complications include, but are not limited to, cardiovascular disease; anemia; malnutrition; mineral and bone disorders; depression and reduced functional status. Due to the complex nature of CKD, referrals to the appropriate health care provider, including a nephrologist, may be beneficial to the person with kidney disease.
Knowledge of kidney function is important for dosage of medications that are excreted by the kidneys. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drug-labeling guides provide adjustments of drug dosages for patients with impaired kidney function. On these labels, serum creatinine; measured creatinine clearance (CrCl); or, most commonly, estimated creatinine clearance using the Cockcroft-Gault equation (eCrCl) are used to estimate kidney function. For most drugs, these labels were developed prior to standardized calibration of creatinine assays and reporting estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) calculated using the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) Study equation. CKD and Drug Dosing: Information for Providers describes NKDEP’s suggestions and rationales for assessment of kidney function for drug-dosing purposes.
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U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010. 7th ed. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, December 2010. U.S. Department of Agriculture website.
http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2010/DietaryGuidelines2010.pdf.
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Page last updated: June 6, 2012
NKDEP is an initiative of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS)
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