Chronic kidney disease
Chronic kidney disease is long-term kidney damage or reduced kidney function that can make it harder for the body to filter blood, balance fluids, and remove waste.
What chronic kidney disease is
Chronic kidney disease, or CKD, means the kidneys have been damaged or have reduced function for a long period of time. Healthy kidneys filter wastes and extra fluid from blood, help control blood pressure, support red blood cell production, and balance minerals. CKD can disturb those jobs gradually, sometimes before a person feels sick.
How kidneys lose function
Kidneys contain tiny filtering units that help separate wastes from useful substances in the blood. Diabetes, high blood pressure, inflammation, inherited conditions, repeated infections, blocked urine flow, and some medicines or toxins can injure these filters or nearby blood vessels. Damage can build quietly over months or years.
Symptoms
Early CKD may cause no obvious symptoms. As kidney function falls, possible signs include fatigue, swelling in the legs or around the eyes, foamy urine, changes in urination, itching, muscle cramps, nausea, poor appetite, shortness of breath, trouble sleeping, or difficulty concentrating. These symptoms can also come from other conditions, so testing matters.
Testing
Two common screening tools are a blood test that estimates glomerular filtration rate, called eGFR, and a urine test for albumin, a protein that can leak into urine when kidneys are damaged. Clinicians may repeat tests over time, check blood pressure, review medicines, use imaging, or investigate the cause when results are abnormal.
Stages and progression
CKD is often described by stages based on eGFR and kidney-damage markers such as urine albumin. Staging helps estimate risk and guide follow-up, but it is not the whole story. A person with stable mild CKD needs different care from someone whose kidney function is falling quickly or who has heavy protein in the urine.
Treatment goals
Treatment aims to slow kidney damage, reduce cardiovascular risk, manage symptoms, and prepare early if advanced kidney failure becomes possible. Care may include blood-pressure control, diabetes management, kidney-protective medicines, avoiding harmful medicines when possible, diet changes, smoking cessation, vaccines, anemia or mineral-bone treatment, and specialist care.
Kidney failure
Advanced CKD can progress to kidney failure, when kidneys can no longer do enough work to keep the body healthy without major support. Options may include dialysis, kidney transplant, or conservative management focused on comfort and quality of life. Planning ahead gives people more time to understand choices before an emergency.
Why it matters
Chronic kidney disease matters because it is common, underrecognized, and closely tied to diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Earlier testing can reveal silent damage while there is still time to slow progression, protect the heart, adjust medicines safely, and help people make decisions before kidney failure is near.