ASN's Mission

To create a world without kidney diseases, the ASN Alliance for Kidney Health elevates care by educating and informing, driving breakthroughs and innovation, and advocating for policies that create transformative changes in kidney medicine throughout the world.

learn more

Contact ASN

1401 H St, NW, Ste 900, Washington, DC 20005

email@asn-online.org

202-640-4660

The Latest on X

Kidney Week

Abstract: SA-PO1074

Hypertensive Patients Should be Routinely Screened for CKD

Session Information

Category: CKD (Non-Dialysis)

  • 2301 CKD (Non-Dialysis): Epidemiology, Risk Factors, and Prevention

Authors

  • Leiba, Adi, Assuta Ashdod Hospital, Ashdod, South, Israel
  • Angel-Korman, Avital, Assuta Ashdod Hospital, Ashdod, South, Israel
Background

Hypertension is a well-established risk factor for CKD , but awareness for early detection of CKD especially among non-diabetic hypertensive patients is lacking. Early detection of CKD can promote treatment with novel therapies such as SGLT-2 inhibitors or new MRAs.
The aim of this study was to estimate referral rates and the extent of positive screening results for CKD (i.e. reduced eGFR and/or proteinuria), in a large scale community-based registry.

Methods

In this real-life, retrospective, observational study we utilized the Maccabi Healthcare Services (MHS) database. Included in the study, were patients over the age of 18 years, who had entered the MHS HTN registry in the past 10 years before February, 2024, and did not have diabetes or CKD.
Early detection of CKD was defined as a PCP referral for blood test (serum creatinine (sCr)) and urine protein quantification (either uACR, uPCR or 24 hour urinary albumin/protein) within 12 months of HTN diagnosis, between 2014 and 2024. CKD diagnosis was defined according to the KDIGO guidelines as eGFR<60ml/min/1.73 square meter and/or urine albumin >30 mg or protein >150 mg per 24 hours or as a ratio to urine creatinine. Only those who had both a sCr test for eGFR estimation and a urine test for protein quantification, were considered as being screened for early detection of CKD.

Results

A total of 1,875,479 MHS members were over 18 years on February 2024, and 121,056 of them had a diagnosis of HTN within the past 10 years (2014-2024). Of those, 76,425 (63.1%) examinees had both urine and blood tests sent within a year after HTN diagnosis . CKD according to the above indices was found in 9958 examinees (13%). Importantly, lifetime prevalence of CKD within all adult MHS members is significantly lower - 5.7%, which indicates the extra burden of disease among those with HTN.
Considering a 13% prevalence of CKD in the hypertensive population, early referral of the remaining 36.9% of patients who were not sent for the full blood and urine workup, would be expected to detect an extra 5815 patients with CKD (13% of 44,631 patients), 4.8% of the overall hypertensive cohort.

Conclusion

A one-time referral of every new hypertensive patient, for both urinary sCr and urine protein estimation, is a cost effective and simple tool for early CKD detection and may have a positive impact on CKD progression and cardiovascular complications of both HTN and CKD.