Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Uddanam is an agricultural area with a high burden of chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology (CKDu). Despite reports of many deaths due to CKD in the lay press, the exact contribution of CKD to deaths remains uncertain because most deaths occur outside medical care. METHODS: We used SmartVA automated verbal autopsy tool to ascertain the cause-specific mortality fractions among a 2419 subject-strong general population cohort of adult subjects in Uddanam between 2018 and 2022. Verbal autopsy interviews were conducted twice with the family members of the deceased. RESULTS: A total of 133 deaths were recorded, giving a crude death rate of 5.5%, 10 times higher than that recorded in national surveys. CKD was responsible for 45% of all deaths, followed by ischemic heart disease (15%) and respiratory disease (6%). CONCLUSION: This study confirms CKD as the leading cause of mortality in this high CKD burden area and provides crucial data for public health decision-making and resource allocation.