How to measure renal function in clinical practice: stage 3 chronic kidney disease is not a consequence of normal ageing.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Mark S MacGregor.
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BACKGROUND: Home haemodialysis (HD) has the best patient outcomes and is the most cost-effective of any dialysis modality, but its use has been declining in many countries. METHODS: Point prevalence rates of different dialysis modalities and transplantation were obtained from national and regional registries for the most recent available year (2001-03) for 21 high-income and 12 middle-income countries. Relationships with median age and prevalence of diabetic nephropathy, healthcare expenditure and population density were assessed. Long-term trends in the use of home HD during the last two to four decades were obtained for seven countries. RESULTS: The prevalence of home HD varies from 0 to 58.4 per million population, and varies between countries, more than any other renal replacement therapy (RRT) modality. There is a positive association between the use of peritoneal dialysis and home HD (Spearman's rho = 0.531, P = 0.013), but no correlation with transplantation prevalence. There is a negative correlation with median age of the renal replacement population (rho = -0.552, P = 0.018). There is no association with prevalence of diabetic nephropathy, healthcare expenditure or population density. Temporal trends in home HD prevalence are dramatically different in different countries, with several countries expanding its use in the last few years. CONCLUSION: The use of home HD varies dramatically between and within countries. The variation cannot be explained by the variation in the use of other RRT modalities, nor by prevalence of diabetic nephropathy, national wealth or population density. The inverse correlation with median age is difficult to explain. Significant expansion of home HD is likely to be possible in most countries, and will be increasingly important as the impressive results of more frequent HD gain credence.
BACKGROUND: Treatment of hypertension slows the progression of non-diabetic nephropathies, but the optimal regimen is unknown. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors are more effective than beta-blockers, but their merits relative to calcium channel blockers are less clear. METHODS: 73 hypertensive patients with progressive non-diabetic nephropathies were prospectively randomised to open-label quinapril (Q, n = 28), amlodipine (A, n = 28) or both drugs (Q&A, n = 17). Therapy was increased to achieve a diastolic blood pressure < 90 mm Hg. Patients were followed for 4 years or until death. The primary outcome was the combined endpoint of doubling serum creatinine, starting renal replacement therapy or death. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the primary outcome, or in the change of glomerular filtration rate. Blood pressure was equally controlled throughout the study period. 29 (40%) patients were withdrawn from the allocated therapy (Q 39%, A 36%, Q&A 47%). Because of the large crossover between trial arms, the data were re-analysed per protocol. The effect on preventing the need for renal replacement therapy then approached significance between the groups (p = 0.089) and the combined quinapril-containing groups were less likely than the amlodipine group to achieve the primary endpoint (p = 0.038), or the individual endpoints of renal replacement therapy (p = 0.030) or doubling creatinine (p = 0.051). CONCLUSIONS: Quinapril is more effective than amlodipine at reducing the incidence of dialysis in patients with progressive renal failure, but only if they can tolerate the drug. The tolerability of these drugs in patients with advanced renal failure is poor.
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BACKGROUND: Atherosclerotic renal artery disease increasingly is recognized as a cause of chronic kidney disease and associated with high morbidity and mortality. We investigated factors predicting patient and renal survival in a cohort of patients with atherosclerotic renal artery disease diagnosed by means of magnetic resonance angiography (MRA). METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed a cohort of patients attending our unit in whom atherosclerotic renal artery disease was identified by means of MRA from 1998 to 2001. One hundred nine patients were followed up for a median of 2.3 years. Baseline clinical and laboratory data were assessed as predictors of outcome by using multivariate Cox proportional hazards analysis. RESULTS: Seventeen patients (16%) required dialysis and 37 patients (34%) died during a median follow-up of 841 days (interquartile range, 326 to 1,206). On multivariate Cox proportional hazards analysis, increased peripheral-blood eosinophil count (hazard ratio, 3.39; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.45 to 7.88; P = 0.0097), creatinine clearance (hazard ratio, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.94 to 0.99; P = 0.0128), and peripheral arterial disease (hazard ratio, 2.09; 95% CI, 1.04 to 4.18; P = 0.0371) were associated with subsequent death. Only creatinine clearance (hazard ratio, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.87 to 0.96; P = 0.0004) was associated with the need for dialysis. There was no association between eosinophil count and other markers of inflammation. Severity of atherosclerotic renal artery disease was not associated independently with either the need for dialysis or death. CONCLUSION: An increased peripheral-blood eosinophil count predicts patient survival in those with atherosclerotic renal artery disease at the time of diagnosis. This novel risk factor may help identify a group of patients who could benefit from intensive medical therapy by using an assay readily available to most clinicians worldwide.
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