Children with chronic renal failure in Sweden 1978–1985

A survey of chronic renal failure (CRF) in Swedish children was carried out for the period 1978–1985, using age-related cut-off levels for creatinine concentrations corresponding approximately to a glomerular filtration rate of 30 ml/min per 1.73 m². The mean annual incidence of CRF was 6.9 and of terminal renal failure (TRF) 4.4/million children. The prevalence increased during the study period, for preterminal renal failure from 14.1 (1978) to 26.1 (1985) and for TRF from 12.4 to 16/million children. The main groups of primary renal disease were malformations (42%), hereditary disorders (27%), and glomerular diseases (14%), while pyelonephritis with vesico-ureteral reflux only made up 5%.