Screening for Chronic Kidney Disease in Adult Males in Vojvodina: A Cross-sectional Study

BACKGROUND: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is one of the most significant global health problems accompanied by numerous complicatons, with constant increase in the number of affected people. This number is much higher in early phases of disease and patients are mostly asymptomatic, so early detection of CKD is crucial. The aim was examination of the prevalence of CKD in the general population of males in Vojvodina, based on estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urine albumin/creatinine ratio (ACR), and exploring the determinants and awareness of CKD. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 3060 male examinees from the general population, over 18 years of age, whose eGFR and ACR were calculated, first morning urine specimen examined, arterial blood pressure measured and body mass index calculated. Standard biochemistry methods determined creatinine, urea, uric acid and glucose serum concentrations as well as albumin and creatinine urine levels. RESULTS: Prevalence of CKD in the adult male population is 7.9%, highest in men over 65 years of age (46.7%), while in the other age groups it is 3.6–12.6%. The largest number of examinees with a positive CKD marker suffer from arterial hypertension (HTA) and diabetes mellitus (DM). Only 1.3% of examinees with eGFR<60 ml/min/1.73 m(2) and/or ACR≥ 3 mg/mmol had been aware of positive CKD biomarkers. CONCLUSIONS: Obtained results show the prevalence of CKD in adult males is 7.9%, HTA and DM are the most important CKD risk factors and the level of CKD awareness is extremely low (1.3%) indicating the necessity for introduction of early stage disease recognition measures, including raising CKD awareness.