This multidisciplinary controversies conference, attended by more than 70 physicians, representing 6 continents and 25 countries, was designed to evaluate classification of chronic kidney disease (CKD) from a global public health perspective. The conference agenda included both plenary sessions and discussion groups that examined CKD classification, surveillance, public policy and associations of CKD with other chronic diseases. Based upon the meeting deliberations, recommendations were made regarding evaluation and promotion of global public health initiatives; extension of current classification systems for CKD and related chronic diseases; and identification of research questions to guide future study design and data collection.

The development and adoption of a consistent framework, pertinent to public policy arenas, clinical care and research endeavors, will permit international collaborations and scientific discoveries to be more readily applicable and easily adopted worldwide.