Published in:
01-10-2013 | Nephrology - Original Paper
Associations between bioelectrical impedance parameters and cardiovascular events in chronic dialysis patients
Published in: International Urology and Nephrology | Issue 5/2013
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Purpose
Malnutrition and fluid overload contribute to the poor cardiovascular prognosis of dialysis patients. Since bioelectrical impedance analysis is an option for the evaluation of body composition and for the monitoring of hydration state, it may assist in the identification of subjects at high cardiovascular risk. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between bioelectrical impedance parameters and cardiovascular events.
Methods
The association between bioelectrical impedance parameters and fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular outcome was evaluated in 145 dialysis patients.
Results
The mean age of the population studied was 54.9 ± 15.4 years, 49.7 % were males, and 35.9 % had diabetes. Forty (27.6 %) patients developed cardiovascular events during the 16 months (8; 32) of follow-up. Comparison of patients with and without cardiovascular events revealed higher extracellular mass/body cell mass (ECM/BCM) and extracellular water/total body water ratios and higher C-reactive protein levels in the former. Survival analysis showed that an ECM/BCM ratio >1.2 and a phase angle <6° were associated with poor cardiovascular prognosis. Among nondiabetic patients, these parameters and capacitance were independently associated with cardiovascular events, suggesting that poor nutritional status and fluid overload are associated with the occurrence of these events.
Conclusions
Phase angle, capacitance and ECM/BCM ratio are valuable parameters for the evaluation of cardiovascular prognosis, supporting the use of bioelectrical impedance for the clinical assessment of dialysis patients.