What is Chronic Kidney Disease?

Please could you explain for us what is chronic kidney disease? Of course, a patient is defined as having chronic kidney disease if they've had abnormality of kidney function or structure of the kidneys for longer than three months. It's a long-term condition versus an acute condition which is where somebody gets kidney impairment for some reason and that recovers. It's a common condition. It's more common as you get older but it can affect anybody. Although having said that we know that Afro-Caribbean and South Asian populations are at increased risk of chronic kidney disease versus Caucasian, white Caucasian European populations. Chronic kidney disease can get worse over time but it can also for the majority of people remain completely stable such that provided you have the appropriate follow-up with your GP or if necessary with a specialist kidney clinic, your function does not cause you significant problem through your lifetime.