Grade Quality of evidence Meaning A High We are confident that the true effect lies close to that of the estimate of the effect. B Moderate The true effect is likely to be close to the estimate of the effect, but there is a possibility that it is substantially different. C Low The true effect may be substantially different from the estimate of the effect. D Very low The estimate of effect is very uncertain, and often will be far from the truth. CURRENT CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD) NOMENCLATURE USED BY KDIGO CKD categories Definition CKD CKD of any stage (1 5), with or without a kidney transplant, including both non-dialysis dependent CKD (CKD 1 5 ND) and dialysis-dependent CKD (CKD 5D) CKD ND Non-dialysis-dependent CKD of any stage (1 5), with or without a kidney transplant (i.e., CKD excluding CKD 5D) CKD T Non-dialysis-dependent CKD of any stage (1 5) with a kidney transplant Specific CKD Stages CKD 1, 2, 3, 4 Specific stages of CKD, CKD ND, or CKD T CKD 3-4, etc. Range of specific stages (e.g., both CKD 3 and CKD 4) CKD 5D Dialysis-dependent CKD 5 CKD 5HD Hemodialysis-dependent CKD 5 CKD 5PD Peritoneal dialysis-dependent CKD 5 Implications Grade* Patients Clinicians Policy We recommend Most people in your situation would want the recommended course of action and only a small proportion would not. Most patients should receive the recommended course of action. The recommendation can be evaluated as a candidate for developing a policy or a performance measure. We suggest The majority of people in your situation would want the recommended course of action, but many would not. Different choices will be appropriate for different patients. 