Assessment of GFR by four methods in adults in Ashanti, Ghana: the need for an eGFR equation for lean African populations

Abstract

Mean eGFR by both MDRD-4 and CKD-EPI was considerably higher than GFR by Ccr and Cockcroft-Gault, a difference that may be attributable to leanness. MDRD-4 appeared to underestimate the fall in GFR with age compared with the three other measurements; the fall with CKD-EPI without the adjustment for race was the closest to that of Ccr. An equation tailored specifically to the needs of the lean populations of Africa is urgently needed. For the present, the CKD-EPI equation without the adjustment for black race appears to be the most useful.