Prevalence of Risk Factors for Chronic Kidney Disease in a Coastal Area of Tamil Nadu, South India.

Abstract

Communicable Diseases which were the leading causs of mortality in the beginning of the twentieth century have now been replaced by Non-Communicable Diseases which account for almost two-thirds of all deaths presently in India. Considering the high prevalence of CKD risk factors it has long been presumed that CKD represents a major public health problem in our country. This study was conducted to determine the risk factors of CKD. Materials and Methods: A community based cross sectional study was conducted among the 1200 respondents, 20 years and above, residing in a coastal area of Villupuram district, over a period of 6 months (Feb-July) using a pre-structured and validated questionnaire. The questionnaire included information on demographic characteristics, lifestyle habits, and awareness of CKD risk factors. Random blood sugar and spot urinary protein and sugar using urinalysis dipsticks were measured. Data was analyzed using SPSS 16.0 version, p value <0.05 was considered significant. Results: Majority of the respondents were females (67.8%) with maximum belonging to the age group of 20- 29yrs (23.8%), followed by 30-39yrs (22.8%).Most of them belonged to upper lower class (31.8%), followed by lower middle class (25.8%). 93.1% of the population were Muslims with 87.9% belonging to backward caste. The prevalence of CKD risk factors among the respondents were Proteinuria(12.5%), Glycosuria(8.4%), Hypertension (24.3%), Diabetes Mellitus(18%) and Obesity( 44.4%). Conclusion: Prevalence of CKD risk factors in the study area was moderate to high. Hence, policies and programmes should focus on these areas and IEC should focus on creating awareness about CKD risk factors in the community.