Early identification of chronic kidney disease (CKD) provides an opportunity to implement
therapies to improve kidney function and slow progression. This chapter will first review the
epidemiology of progression to define the normal and CKD-related rate of decline in kidney
function and discuss the competing risks between death and development of end-stage
renal disease. Common pathophysiologic mechanisms underlie the progression of most
kidney diseases, including glomerular capillary hypertension, renal fibrosis induced by renal …