India Recorded 138 Million Chronic Kidney Disease Cases in 2023, Now Second Highest Worldwide, Study Finds

India reported an estimated 138 million chronic kidney disease (CKD) cases in 2023, making it the country with the second-highest CKD burden globally, according to a new study. Researchers say rising rates are driven by factors such as diabetes, hypertension, and limited early detection. The findings highlight growing pressure on India’s healthcare system and the urgent need for expanded screening and prevention programs

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India recorded 138 million cases of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in 2023, the second-highest total in the world after China’s 152 million, according to a new global analysis published in The Lancet. The study, led by researchers at the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) and other U.S. and U.K. institutions, found CKD was the ninth-leading cause of death worldwide last year, claiming nearly 1.5 million lives.

North Africa and the Middle East reported the highest CKD prevalence at 18 percent, followed by South Asia at nearly 16 percent and more than 15 percent in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

CKD is also a major driver of heart disease, responsible for almost 12 percent of cardiovascular deaths globally in 2023 and ranking as the seventh-leading contributor to heart-related mortality ahead of diabetes and obesity. Fourteen risk factors were identified, with diabetes, hypertension, and obesity contributing the greatest loss of healthy years.

“Chronic kidney disease is both a major risk factor for other leading causes of health loss and a significant disease burden in its own right,” said senior author Theo Vos, professor emeritus at IHME. “Yet it continues to receive far less policy attention than other non-communicable diseases, even as its impact grows fastest in regions facing the greatest inequities.”

The findings draw on data from the Global Burden of Disease 2023 study, which tracks health trends across 204 countries and territories. Researchers noted that diets high in sodium and low in fruits and vegetables also significantly increase CKD risk.

Most people living with CKD in 2023 were in the early stages of the disease, underscoring the need for wider screening and earlier intervention. Stronger prevention strategies could reduce heart-related deaths and delay the need for dialysis or transplant, the authors said.

Access to kidney replacement therapies remains uneven globally, making early detection and equitable care critical. Improving diagnosis, addressing key risk factors, and expanding affordable treatment options will be essential to curb the rapidly growing burden of CKD on patients, families, and health systems, the researchers concluded.

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Source: NDTV

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