Approved research

Renal Studies Group and Population Studies Group, Clinical Trial Service Unit and Epidemiological Studies Unit (CTSU), Nuffield Department of Population Health (NDPH), University of Oxford

Lay summary

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects about 10% of the UK adult population and is associated with increased risks of progression to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and other vascular and non-vascular diseases. The proposal is to investigate: 1. the determinants of incident and progressive CKD, and 2. the impact of CKD on a wide range of health outcomes CKD is increasingly common (10% of the UK) and has important consequences for patients, including substantially increased risk of developing end-stage renal disease and dying prematurely (particularly from, but not restricted to, vascular disease). The proposed work will help quantify the relative importance of known CKD risk factors and perhaps identify novel ones. Genetic analyses will help assess whether these CKD risk factors are associations or are truly causal (ie, may help identify new treatment targets) Initially, cross-sectional analyses of the baseline questionnaire, measurements and relevant biomarkers/ clinical outcomes data will be analysed to provide a platform for longitudinal analysis as UKB matures, which will document far more reliably than before the effects of the determinants of CKD and the impact of CKD on cardiovascular disease, infections and other (as yet unidentified) complications. The co-applicants conducted the SHARP trial in 9,000 patients with moderate to advanced CKD and therefore, case-control experiments of genetic exposures using genetic risk scores will be conducted using a combination of SHARP/UKB cases and UKB controls. The full cohort is required.