ABSTRACT:
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is defined as the dysfunction of the kidney for more than three months, regardless of the underlying cause.¹ It has a high death rate, and people with long-term kidney failure are five to ten times more likely to have a reduced health-related quality of life and die prematurely.² CKD is a growing challenge in Nigeria, and despite the surge of health research in the country, the scope and impact of the disease, as well as the depth and breadth (capacity) of research, are not known.³ A scoping review of peer-reviewed CKD publications in Nigeria between 2000 to 2021 was conducted. Relevant literature was searched for in four databases (LSTM library, Medline, CINAHL, and Cochrane). Then, a manual search of the included studies’ reference lists was conducted for additional studies. The quantity, focus, methodology, and quality of studies on CKD conducted by different authors and institutions within and across Nigeria were assessed.⁴,⁵ A total of 119 publications were retrieved over 21 years, out of which 111 were led by authors affiliated with a Nigerian institution. No commentary was retrieved, and 97.5% (116) of the studies were original research, with only three reviews retrieved. The southern regions of the country had 71% of the publications and 76% of the institutions in the country, leaving the North with only 29% and 24% respectively. The majority (30.2%) of the studies focused on the epidemiology of CKD, of which 88.9% used a cross-sectional approach. The retrieval of only a few (17.6%) population-based studies and the finding that 44.5% of the studies were published in low-impact journals are major gaps in research focus and quality, respectively. It is necessary to build the capacity of CKD researchers and institutions in Nigeria so they can carry out and produce high-value evidence.