Kidney Disease & UMOD (THP)

Chronic Kidney Disease

The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is approximately 10-15% of the world’s population, or about 700 million people.  The distribution varies by region, risk factors, and comorbidities.  The ultimate progression of CKD, Stage 5, also known as End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) is essentially kidney failure which would require dialysis and/or kidney transplantation.  The mortality rate of those with ESRD ranges from 10-20%.  Kidney transplants do improve survival rate but are still elevated compared to healthy individuals.  To avoid this outcome, early detection is key, as well as monitoring disease progression to avoid such an outcome.

 

The need for an available, easy, and abundant biomarker is crucial.  For decades, serum creatinine was the biomarker for detecting and monitoring kidney disease. To obtain a better result, albumin needs to be tested as well to obtain an albumin to creatinine ratio. A more reliable, independent biomarker is needed, and that biomarker is uromodulin.

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UMOD levels and how it relates to CKD –

• Serum UMOD has been a reliable biomarker for detecting early stages of CKD and monitoring kidney function. As kidney function declines, lower concentrations of circulating serum UMOD are observed. [2]

• Elevated serum UMOD levels were in correlation with a lower chance of future unfavorable kidney events. [3] 

• Lower serum UMOD levels were shown to be a predictor for developing end-stage kidney disease.  [4,5,6]

• Lower urinary UMOD levels have demonstrated and increased risk in developing CKD within a 10-year period. [7]

• Elevated urinary UMOD levels have been shown to lead to CKD onset.

 

(NOTE: There is a genetic component to these findings that may need to be addressed.  On the UMOD gene there have been mention of alleles: rs12917707, rs4293393 and rs6497476.)