Diabetic Kidney Disease: Concepts and Definition

Abstract

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a significant and critical comorbidity in diabetic patients. However, in Japan and other countries, the "terms" used to describe CKD complicated with diabetes have been confused. These terms include diabetic nephropathy, diabetic kidney disease (DKD), CKD with diabetes, and diabetes and CKD. To make it clear, the Japanese Diabetes Society and the Japanese Society of Nephrology updated the corresponding Japanese nomenclature for DKD and clearly defined the concept of DKD. We herein review the brief history of kidney complications in diabetic patients and the definition of the concept of DKD.