ASN's Mission

To create a world without kidney diseases, the ASN Alliance for Kidney Health elevates care by educating and informing, driving breakthroughs and innovation, and advocating for policies that create transformative changes in kidney medicine throughout the world.

learn more

Contact ASN

1401 H St, NW, Ste 900, Washington, DC 20005

email@asn-online.org

202-640-4660

The Latest on X

Kidney Week

Abstract: FR-PO1068

Effect of Drinking More Water on Kidney Function Decline in Adults with CKD: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Session Information

Category: Chronic Kidney Disease (Non-Dialysis)

  • 305 CKD: Clinical Trials and Tubulointerstitial Disorders

Author

  • Clark, William F., London Health Sciences Center, London, Ontario, Canada

Group or Team Name

  • Water Intake Trial (WIT) Investigators
Background

Drinking more water is associated with a slower rate of kidney function decline in animal experiments and human observational studies. We conducted a clinical trial to determine whether drinking more water slows the decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) over one year in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).

Methods

Design: Randomized controlled trial.
Setting: Nine centers in Ontario, Canada (2013–17).
Participants: Adults with stage 3 CKD and microalbuminuria.
Intervention: The hydration group was coached to drink more water above their usual fluid intake and the control group to maintain usual fluid intake.
Analysis: The primary outcome was the one-year change in eGFR. Secondary outcomes included the one-year change in plasma copeptin, 24-hr urine albumin, 24-hr creatinine clearance, and health-related quality of life. In the primary analysis patients were analyzed according to random assignment (intention to treat), and in additional analyses by protocol adherence, defined using 24-hr urine volume (per-protocol).

Results

Of 631 randomized patients (mean age 65, men [63%], diabetes [48%], mean eGFR 43 mL/min/1.73m2) 2% died within one year and 95% of survivors provided one-year follow-up measurements. At 12 months, the 24-hr urine volume was 0.6 L/day higher in the hydration group than the control group (95% CI, 0.5 to 0.7; p<0.001). The average one-year decline in eGFR was 2.2 mL/min/1.73m2 in the hydration group and 1.9 mL/min/1.73m2 in the control group, and the adjusted between-group difference in change was -0.3 mL/min/1.73m2 (95% CI, -1.7 to 1.2; p=0.74). Results were similar in the per-protocol analysis. No significant between-group difference in one-year change was seen for 24-hour urine albumin or health-related quality of life. However, at one year, plasma copeptin concentrations were lower in the hydration group than the control group (the between-group difference in one-year change was -2.3 pmol/L [95% CI, -3.9 to -0.6; p=0.009]), while 24-hr creatinine clearance was higher in the hydration group compared to the control group (the between-group difference in one-year change was 3.6 mL/min/1.73m2 [95% CI, 0.8 to 6.5; p=0.012]).

Conclusion

Among patients with stage 3 CKD, the average one-year change in eGFR did not differ in patients who drank more water compared with those who continued their usual fluid intake.

Funding

  • Commercial Support –