Letter to the Editor: The Importance of Oral Health in Kidney Diseases

To the Editor, Chronic renal failure (CRF) is defined as a progressive decline in renal function associated with a reduced glomerular filtration rate (GFR, as measured clinically by the creatinine clearance rate). The most common causes are diabetes mellitus, glomerulonephritis, and chronic hypertension. In older individuals, the most commonly diagnosed causes of CRF are renovascular disease and diabetes mellitus, although other causes include polycystic kidney disease and pyelonephritis. The incidence of CRF continues to rise worldwide and, as a consequence, increasing numbers of individuals with such disease will probably continue to require oral health care. CRF and its treatment have systemic and oral manifestations.