Epidemiology of chronic kidney disease: results from a population of older adults in Germany

Abstract

Objective: To determine prevalences and stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD), and evaluate association of CKD with related covariables in a large population of older adults.

Methods: This cross-sectional analysis included 9806 participants of a general health check-up aged 50-74 years in Germany. We performed multivariate analysis to identify association of CKD with related covariables. Partial spearman correlations of eGFR with related biomarkers were calculated.

Results: Overall, 17.4% of subjects had CKD. Prevalences of stages 1, 2, 3, 4/5 CKD were 4.6%, 4.7%, 17.0% and 0.4%, respectively. Prevalence of CKD increased with age and peaked in age 70-74 years with 23.9%. In multivariable analysis of older age, female, self-reported history of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and statin usage were independently associated with increased risk for CKD. Significant correlations were found between eGFR and serum cystatin C (-0.28), C-reactive protein (-0.04), fasting glucose (0.12), HbA(1c) (-0.06), total cholesterol (-0.32), and triglycerides (-0.07) after adjustment for covariates.

Conclusions: This study shows a high prevalence of CKD among older adults. It highlights the association of eGFR with history of cardiovascular diseases, glycemic markers, and cardiovascular risk factors and may point to further possible targets in early prevention of CKD.