Chronic kidney diseases are usually divided into “functional” and “structural.” Functional typically refers to conditions that impair the normal working of the liver but can be reversed with adequate early treatment.

Structural kidney diseases can be either inherited (such as polycystic kidney disease or glomerular, interstitial, or vascular diseases) or the result of functional disease that has not been treated. Examples of these would be damage from urinary reflux or sepsis-induced acute kidney injury. Such structural injury usually results in the need for dialysis or transplant.