UC Irvine

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a global public health burden. Dialysis is not only costly but may not be readily available in developing countries. Even in highly developed nations, many patients may prefer to defer or avoid dialysis. Thus, alternative options to dialysis therapy or to complement dialysis are needed urgently and are important objectives in CKD management that could have huge clinical and economic implications globally. The role of nutritional therapy as a strategy to slow CKD progression and uremia was discussed as early as the late 19th and early 20th century, but was only seriously explored in the 1970s. There is a revival of interest recently owing to encouraging data as well as the increase of precision medicine with an emphasis on a personalized approach to CKD management. Although part of the explanation for the inconclusive data may relate to variations in study design and dietary prescription, diversity in genetic make-up, variations in the non-nutritional management of CKD, intra-individual variations in responses to dietary and nondietary treatment, psychosocial factors, and dietary compliance issues, these all may contribute to the heterogeneous data and responses. This brings in the evolving concept of precision medicine, in which disease management should be tailored and individualized according not only to clinical manifestations but also to the genetic make-up and biologic responses to therapy, which may vary depending on genetic composition. Precision nutrition management also should take into account patient demographics, social, psychological, education, and compliance factors, which all may influence the therapeutic needs and responses to the nutritional therapy prescribed. In this review, we provide a novel concept of precision medicine in nutritional management in end-stage kidney disease with a transition to dialysis and propose how this may be the way forward for nutritional therapy in the CKD population.