ANN ARBOR, MI — The prevalence of kidney disease is higher among older, female, non-Hispanic Black adults and those with diabetes or hypertension, according to survey data.
A new report discussed how “kidney diseases are an important public health problem, rising in global significance. In place for nearly 2 decades, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Kidney Disease Surveillance System is the first comprehensive surveillance system developed in the United States, focused exclusively on tracking kidney disease before ESKD [end stage kidney disease.”
The authors were from the University of Michigan and the VA Ann Arbor, MI, Healthcare System, the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and the Uniformed Services University and Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, both in Bethesda, MD.
They explained how the Kidney Disease Surveillance System incorporates key data and trends from multiple, large national-level survey data sources such as the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; electronic medical record data from the military and the VA healthcare systems; healthcare claims from Medicare and Optum, as well as social determinants of health from the American Community Survey.
Findings included that the prevalence of CKD among civilian U.S. adults remained steady between 13% and 14%. That was not true among veterans, however, according to the report in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.1
“Among U.S. veterans, the incidence of CKD and rates of diagnosis of AKI increased from 2008 to 2022 (incidence: 62.8 to 71.5/1000 person-years, AKI: 84.9 to 241.7 cases/1000 person-years),” the authors wrote. “Awareness of the disease nationwide among persons with CKD has historically been low (<10%), but starting in 2013, has increased to approximately 25%. Persons with CKD self-report more problems with sleep, and those aged 65 years and older self-report a higher prevalence of functional limitations.”
The survey also observed improvements in quality-of-care measures, including medication prescription and increase in both serum creatinine and albuminuria testing. Another positive was that increased self-reported physical activity occurred among CKD patients. Yet, the report noted that food insecurity increased among CKD patients, with the highest prevalence in young, female, non-Hispanic Black, and Hispanic adults.
“Although population-level prevalence of CKD remains stable, higher AKI and CKD rates are being observed in health systems settings,” the researchers wrote, adding, “Robust surveillance is key to raising awareness of kidney disease, its risk factors, care quality, and outcomes. Surveillance findings may inform policy and evidence-based practices that reduce premature morbidity and mortality, improve quality of life, and reduce cost.”
- Bragg-Gresham J, Xu F, Han Y, Licon AL, et. Al. Epidemiology of Kidney Disease in the United States: Highlights from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Kidney Disease Surveillance System. Clin J Am Soc Nephrol. 2025 Dec 4. doi: 10.2215/CJN.0000000867. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41343247.
