Uremic frost

Uremic frost is a colloquial description for crystallized urea deposits that can be found on the skin of those affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD).

[1] Uremic frost was first described in 1865 by Harald Hirschsprung (1830-1916), a Danish pediatrician.

Uremic frost is a classical pre-dialysis era description of crystallized urea deposits over the skin of patients with prolonged kidney failure and severe uremia.

[3] This condition is more common in severe, untreated uremia and is associated with serum BUN levels >200.

It is becoming rare in people with chronic kidney disease managed on long-term hemodialysis, with estimated prevalence between 0.8 and 3%.