A new global study has revealed that chronic kidney disease (CKD) is becoming a major health concern around the world.
The number of people living with reduced kidney function has more than doubled in the past three decades—from 378 million in 1990 to 788 million in 2023. As the world’s population grows and ages, CKD has climbed the ranks to become one of the top 10 causes of death.
The study was led by researchers from NYU Langone Health, the University of Glasgow, and the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. They focused on CKD, which is a slow loss of kidney function.
In the early stages, most people don’t notice any symptoms. But if it progresses, the condition may require serious treatments like dialysis or a kidney transplant.
Researchers estimate that about 14% of adults worldwide now live with CKD. In 2023 alone, around 1.5 million people died from the condition.
When adjusted for population changes, this is more than a 6% increase in deaths since 1993. According to Dr. Josef Coresh from NYU Langone, CKD is becoming a bigger public health issue and should be seen as seriously as heart disease, cancer, and mental illness.
In response to its growing impact, the World Health Organization added CKD to its list of top health priorities in May 2023. The goal is to reduce deaths from non-infectious diseases, including CKD, by one-third before 2030. Dr. Coresh emphasized that understanding the current situation is key to creating effective solutions.
The study, published in The Lancet and presented at the American Society of Nephrology’s Kidney Week, is one of the most detailed reports on CKD in the past decade. It was part of the Global Burden of Disease 2023 study, which tracks long-term health patterns worldwide.
The team reviewed over 2,200 scientific papers and national health records from 133 countries. They looked at the number of diagnoses, deaths, and how much CKD impacts daily life.
One of the study’s major findings is that CKD is strongly linked to heart disease. In fact, it was responsible for 12% of all cardiovascular deaths. It also ranked 12th for conditions that reduce quality of life due to disability. The main risk factors for CKD include high blood sugar, high blood pressure, and obesity.
Most of the people with CKD in this study were in the early stages. This is a critical time when simple treatments and lifestyle changes—like eating healthier or taking medicine—can prevent the disease from getting worse.
However, many people, especially in low-income areas like parts of Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America, don’t have access to dialysis or transplants because they are too expensive or not available.
Dr. Morgan Grams, one of the lead authors, pointed out that CKD is often not diagnosed early enough. More widespread urine testing could help catch the disease early and save lives.
She also mentioned that several new medications have become available in the past five years. These drugs can slow down CKD and reduce the chance of heart problems. However, it may take years before the benefits are seen worldwide.
The study also notes that because many people are never tested for CKD, the true number of affected individuals could be even higher than the current estimates.
The project was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Gates Foundation, and the National Kidney Foundation. The research team included experts from several universities and health organizations.
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