Abstract:
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is now a major public
health problem globally, more so in developing countries
with Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) being the most
affected sub-region.1 A systematic review and metaanalysis
estimated CKD prevalence in SSA to be
13.9%.2 In Ghana the true prevalence still remains unknown.
The growing burden of CKD in Africa can be
largely attributed to the rising prevalence of hypertension,
diabetes and chronic glomerulonephritis.1,3 CKD
affects people who are economically productive in the
African continent1. Aside the heightened cardiovascular
morbidity and mortality, CKD imposes huge economic
burden on affected individuals and their care takers.1,3
Additionally patients with CKD suffer from various
psychological problems such as depression, anxiety,
cognitive dysfunction amongst others.4,5 Thus the disease,
cost of treatment and these psychological problems
may lead to poor quality of life. It is therefore imperative
to make accurate diagnosis. The diagnosis of
CKD is usually made by estimating Glomerular Filtration
Rate (GFR). Measuring GFR is relatively cumbersome
therefore more simple endogenous variables have
been used to estimate renal function. The most commonly
used variable is serum creatinine