Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Overview

The burden of CKD is growing. However, economical and effective testing and treatment exist.

• Definition: What is CKD?
• Risk Factors: Who is at risk for CKD?
• Prevention: How can I help my patients slow chronic kidney disease and prevent kidney failure?
• Diagnosis: How do I test my patients for CKD?
• Treatment: What can I offer my patients with CKD?

CKD Nutrition

View NKDEP's suite of materials on CKD and diet that can help general practice registered dietitians provide effective medical nutrition therapy to CKD patients who are not on dialysis. Now available for ordering!

GFR Calculators

Find IDMS-traceable GFR calculators to estimate kidney function for adults and children.

• Frequently Asked Questions About Estimated GFR Values

Tools & Resources

NKDEP assists practitioners by providing an array of resources and tools.
Hear what a diabetes educator and a dietitian have to say about NKDEP's materials.

• Nephrology Referral Form (Online Tool)
• CKD and Drug Dosing: Information for Providers
• Explaining Your Kidney Test Results: A Tear-off Pad for Clinical Use | Adobe PDF (407K)
  
• Explaining Your Kidney Test Results: A Tear-off Pad for Clinical Use (Spanish) | Adobe PDF (291K)
• Pediatric CKD Resources
• Continuing Medical Education
• Quick Reference on UACR and GFR | Adobe PDF (173K)
• Body Mass Index (BMI) Calculator

Clinical Practice Guidelines

NKDEP provides practical guidance for optimal patient care in the treatment of: cholesterol, chronic kidney disease, diabetic nephropathy, hypertension, and nutrition.

Educating Patients

Patient education is an effective and important, yet often underutilized, component in CKD treatment. NKDEP offers a variety of tools and resources to help health professionals educate their patients. These include:

• Short Web Videos demonstrating sample patient-provider interactions around common CKD questions. Topics include CKD and risk, treatment, testing and diagnosis, and dialysis and transplantation.
• Patient Education Concepts for providing diabetes self-management education to patients. Includes talking points to help answer common questions patients may have.
• Explaining Your Kidney Test Results: A Tear-off Pad for Clinical Use to help providers discuss urine albumin and GFR results with their patients. The tear-off pad includes 50 easy-to-read patient education sheets with basic information about CKD and tips to keep the kidneys healthy.

View a complete listing of free NKDEP materials and resources for patients, families, health professionals, and laboratory professionals.

Statistics

NKDEP provides sources for statistics on the incidence and prevalence of kidney disease.

PDF files require Adobe Acrobat.