Association Between Age of Onset of Hypertension and Risk of CKD: Cohort Study Based on the UK Biobank.

Background: The onset age of hypertension has decreased significantly due to lifestyle changes over the years. However, the link between hypertension onset age and subsequent incidence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains unclear.

Methods: Individual-level data were obtained from the UK Biobank. Information on the diagnosis of hypertension and CKD was collected at baseline and follow-up. The propensity score matching method and Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the relationship between different hypertension morbidity ages and the incidence of CKD.

Results: A total of 485,101 participants without CKD at baseline were included in this analysis (women, 265,343 [54.70%]). Among the 186,880 participants with hypertension, the multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio (HR) for developing CKD was 1.117 (95% CI: 1.102-1.132) for each 10-year decrease in age at the onset of hypertension. After applying propensity score matching, the risk of CKD in hypertensive patients was significantly higher compared to those without hypertension across all age groups. Additionally, the hazard ratios tended to increase with a decrease in age at the onset of hypertension. Subgroup analysis showed that participants with cardiovascular disease (CVD) at baseline increased the adverse effect of hypertension on CKD in younger participants.

Conclusions: Our research indicated that the younger the age at hypertension diagnosis, the greater the risk of developing CKD. Individuals who experience the onset of hypertension before the age of 45 may constitute a high-risk CKD subpopulation, highlighting the need for vigilant monitoring and early intervention.