Prevalence of chronic kidney disease in two tertiary care hospitals: high proportion of cases with uncertain aetiology.

The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rising globally, and is attributed to the epidemic of type 2 diabetes mellitus [1]. This trend in developing countries appears to be due to chronic glomerulonephritis and diabetes, both contributing significantly to increasing endstage renal disease [2]. In Sri Lanka, a systematic assessment on CKD is lacking, although the available literature points to a rising trend in hospital admissions and deaths due to CKD [3]. This study attempts to document some features of CKD and describe cases with an uncertain aetiology observed at two teaching hospitals in Kandy and Anuradhapura between 2000 and 2002.