Clinical practice guideline monitoring children and young people with, or at risk of developing autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD)

Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD) is thought to affect about 1 in 1000 people in the UK. ADPKD causes a progressive decline in kidney function, with kidney failure tending to occur in middle age. Children and young people with ADPKD may not have any symptoms. However they may have high blood pressure, which may accelerate progression to later stages of chronic kidney disease.

There is uncertainty and variation in how health professionals manage children and young people with confirmed or a family history of ADPKD, because of a lack of evidence. For example, health professionals may be unsure about when to test children’s blood pressure and how often to monitor it in the hospital clinic or at the GP. They may have different approaches in recommending scanning or genetic testing for ADPKD in childhood, with some recommending waiting until the young person is mature enough to make this decision his or herself.

This guideline is intended to help families affected by ADPKD by making sure that:

health professionals with specialist knowledge in ADPKD offer you information on inheritance and potential benefits and harms of testing for ADPKD.

the decision to test and the method of testing for ADPKD in children and young people is shared between you or your family and the health professionals

blood pressure assessment is undertaken regularly in children and young people at risk of developing ADPKD