Chronic Kidney Disease

CKD is defined by two independent axes: how much function remains, and how much damage is present

Chronic kidney disease is diagnosed when abnormalities of kidney structure or function persist for more than three months, and its severity is captured on two independent axes rather than one. The 'G' (glomerular filtration rate) category estimates how much filtering capacity remains, while the 'A' (albumin-to-creatinine ratio) category estimates how much the filtration barrier is leaking. A patient can have a preserved eGFR but significant albuminuria, or a low eGFR with minimal albuminuria: the combination, not either value alone, predicts the risk of progression to end-stage renal disease and of cardiovascular events, which is why both are required to stage the disease.