Essential kidney functions include:

• Removing toxic waste products from the body.
• Keeping the concentration of salts steady in your body.
• Maintaining constant levels of water.
• Controlling blood pressure.
• Keeping bones healthy by activating vitamin D.
• Helping to make blood cells to prevent anaemia.

When the kidney is suffering from a chronic disease these kidney functions are less effective resulting in ill-health.

The major Kidney diseases include:

• Diabetes.
• Glomerulonephritis (damage to the filters in the kidney).
• Narrowing of the blood vessels supplying blood to the kidney.
• High blood pressure.
• Cystic disease which is a genetic form of kidney disease.

Kidney disease is very common, but most people will not develop kidney failure. However if there is active fibrosis in the kidney, functioning kidney is replaced by scar tissue. If this is the case then the function of the kidney gradually declines, finally leading to kidney failure and need for dialysis or a transplant.

Kidney fibrosis:

• is almost always found in patients with kidney disease, irrespective of the initial cause.
• is not a disease on its own, but develops as a result of any type of kidney damage
• Gradually replaces the functioning units of the kidney with scar tissue
• When detected on a kidney biopsy predicts the long-term risk of developing kidney failure.
• Is a disease for which there is currently no treatment.
• Contributes to kidney failure which affects over 50,000 people in the UK.