Hypertension and kidney disease in Asia.
OBJECTIVE
Communicable diseases were traditionally the major cause of public health concern in Asian countries, most of which were less developed. With industrialization and associated lifestyle changes during the past few decades, however, noncommunicable diseases similar to those that affect Western societies have emerged in Asian countries. The purpose of the review was to examine recent evidence about the burden and factors associated with hypertension and chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Asian countries.


RESULTS
Hypertension has become one of the leading causes of mortality in Asia. Although its prevalence continues to rise, it remains under-diagnosed and under-treated. CKD is becoming increasingly common mainly due to an increase in risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity. Treatment of advanced CKD is overwhelmingly burdensome in a resource poor environment. Barriers to early detection of CKD in Asians include the fact that equations to estimate the glomerular filtration rate have not been validated in this population, and the uncertainty about appropriate glomerular filtration rate cutoff values to define CKD.


CONCLUSIONS
Concerted efforts are needed to develop and implement cost-effective strategies for prevention and treatment of hypertension and CKD in Asian countries. More research is needed on these conditions in these populations.
Jafar
Tazeen H
TH
Section of Nephrology, Department of Medicine, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan. tazeen.jafar@aku.edu
D001208:Asia / Q000453:epidemiology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005919:Glomerular Filtration Rate; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology*; D007674:Kidney Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D012307:Risk Factors