Declining kidney function and comorbid conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and heart failure significantly drive up healthcare costs, particularly inpatient expenses.
Poorer kidney function and the presence of diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, or heart failure drive substantial health care costs and increase the proportion of costs attributable to inpatient care. The large contribution of inpatient costs begins in earlier stages of CKD and escalates as kidney function declines. Additional therapies to reduce CKD incidence, slow CKD progression, and lower hospitalization risk are needed to benefit patients and reduce CKD's economic burden.
Nichols et al. (Tue,) studied this question.