Majority unaware they have kidney disease

An Australian dies from kidney-related diseases every 25 minutes and experts are calling for new health checks to find the 90 per cent of people who don't know they're sick.

More than 1.7 million Australian adults are living with indicators of chronic kidney disease, but Kidney Health Australia says about 1.3 million people don't know they have it.

It's turning into a major headache for the health system, with dialysis now the number one reason for hospital admission.

A report for Kidney Health Week estimates at least 16,000 Australian adults will develop chronic kidney disease each year.

"The vast majority of these people will be unaware they have (it), as it is a largely asymptomatic condition, and identification relies on opportunistic testing in people with identified risk factors," the report, released on Monday, says.

Kidney Health Australia chief executive Anne Wilson says 60 Australians die every day with kidney-related diseases.

"If kidney disease is detected early, it can either be halted or progression to end stage kidney disease can be slowed by as much as 50 per cent," Ms Wilson said.

"(We're) calling on an incoming federal government to fund an integrated health check for our GPs."

Data shows Illawarra/Shoalhaven in NSW has more than twice the national average of people with kidney disease, while the Greater Metro South Brisbane region has the highest number of people affected.

The State of the Nation: Chronic Kidney Disease Hot Spots report also shows the gap in indigenous kidney health remains a critical issue, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people more than twice as likely as non-indigenous people to have indicators of chronic kidney disease.

"Investment in early detection of chronic kidney disease not only helps address the increasing costs to the health system, but delays the need for dialysis, thereby improving patients' quality of life," Ms Wilson said.