Home urine testing and targeted education may help slow chronic kidney disease progression through improved self-management.
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is the fifth leading cause of mortality in the United States and is associated with an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease. Enhanced education and access to home urine tests can help patients more effectively manage their CKD, reducing patients’ risks, according to research presented at the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) annual meeting, held from June 23 to 27, 2026, in Las Vegas, Nevada
To help patients better control CKD and improve their kidney function, researchers developed a pilot educational intervention that included 50 regularly scheduled patients. Participants were educated on how to use and interpret results from home test strips for measuring proteinuria, as well as dietary guidelines for management of CKD.
The goal “was getting patients involved and [gaining] more awareness of their kidney function, to try to slow down kidney disease progression and hopefully prevent them from having to go on dialysis,” Lara Devero-Williams, APRN, FNP-C, a nurse practitioner (NP) who specializes in nephrology and author of the study, told The Clinical Advisor.
We were able to do follow-up calls and education in regards to knowing how much protein they were spilling so that we can be able to do further testing with them in the office to slow down proteinuria to hopefully reduce progression of chronic kidney disease
The Pilot Study
At the start of the study, all participants were evaluated on their knowledge about CKD. At baseline, participants scored an average of 32 out of 100 points. Knowledge gaps were evident in:
- Patients’ understanding of proteinuria
- Blood pressure management
- Best exercise programs.
All participants then watched an educational video on CKD management as part of the intervention.
“These patients were given proteinuria test kits [for use] at home,” Ms Devero Williams explained. “We were able to do follow-up calls and education in regards to knowing how much protein they were spilling [into urine]; we scheduled further testing with patients in the office to slow down proteinuria to hopefully reduce progression of chronic kidney disease.”
There was high engagement among the 50 participants; 100% successfully used and interpreted the results of the color-coded urine test strips, and expressed interest in continued dietary guidelines and interactive learning opportunities
“We focused on a lot of areas: making sure they understood that we wanted them to focus on diet. We wanted them to reduce their sodium intake, and reduce proteinuria by reducing their intake of red meats, and increasing exercise and hydration.” Through this education, “we were also able to maintain their blood pressure and improve their diabetes,” Ms Devero-Williams said
Although this project was limited by concurrent organizational changes and the evaluation was limited to short-term impacts, Ms Devero-Williams explained that these results demonstrate a pathway toward improved patient knowledge and self-management of chronic kidney disease
Hear directly from Lara Devero-Williams, APRN, FNP-C, below:
This article originally appeared on Clinical Advisor
Devero-Williams L. Empowering self-monitoring in chronic kidney disease: an evidence-based approach to early proteinuria detection and patient education. Presented at: AANP 2026; June 23-27, 2026; Las Vegas, NV
