PhD defence Mark Jacob Carla Marion van Dam

Keywords: Nephrology, Pediatrics, Childhood obesity, Obesity-related comorbidities

"Kidneys under Pressure in Children Interplay between Obesity-related Comorbidities and Lifestyle Changes"

Obesity is a chronic condition characterized by excessive fat accumulation with harmful consequences for health. Overweight and obesity are becoming increasingly common among children and are associated with a wide range of health problems. However, the impact of obesity on kidney health still receives insufficient attention. Therefore, this topic was the central focus of this thesis.

Overweight and obesity place children’s kidneys under pressure and increase the risk of developing kidney disease later in life. Although most children with overweight or obesity have a normal creatinine-based estimated glomerular filtration rate, an indication of glomerular hyperfiltration was found in approximately 10% of the children, which is considered a risk factor for kidney damage. In addition, this research showed that lifestyle intervention may contribute to improvement of this estimated hyperfiltration.

Overweight and obesity in children should be considered as modifiable risk factors in order to help prevent future kidney disease.

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