<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Non-fasting triglyceride (TG) concentrations are useful for predicting various diseases, but most epidemiological studies investigated the association between fasting TG concentrations and chronic kidney disease (CKD). This study aimed to examine the association between casual (fasting or non-fasting) serum TG concentrations and new-onset CKD in the general Japanese population. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We conducted a population-based, retrospective cohort study using annual health checkup data of residents of Iki City, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. Between 2008 and 2019, participants without CKD (estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 mL/min/1.73 m<sup>2</sup> and/or proteinuria) at baseline were included. Casual serum TG concentrations were classified by sex as tertile 1 (men: <0.95 mmol/L; women: <0.86 mmol/L), tertile 2 (0.95–1.49 mmol/L; 0.86–1.25 mmol/L), and tertile 3 (≥1.50 mmol/L; ≥1.26 mmol/L). The outcome was incident CKD. Multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals were estimated using the Cox proportional hazards model. <b><i>Results:</i></b> 4,946 participants (2,236 [45%] men and 2,710 [55%] women; 3,666 [74%] fasting and 1,182 [24%] non-fasting) were included in the present analysis. During an average follow-up of 5.2 years, 934 participants (434 men and 509 women) developed CKD. In men, the incidence rate (per 1,000 person-years) of CKD increased with an elevation in TG concentrations (tertile 1: 29.4, tertile 2: 42.2, and tertile 3: 43.3). This association was significant, even after adjustment for other risk factors of age, current smoking habits, current alcohol intake, exercise habits, obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyper-low-density-lipoprotein cholesterolemia, and use of lipid-lowering therapy (<i>p</i> = 0.003 for trend). In contrast, in women, TG concentrations were not associated with incident CKD (<i>p</i> = 0.547 for trend). <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Casual serum TG concentrations are significantly associated with new-onset CKD in Japanese men in the general population.
A 53-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with dysbasia and forgetfulness. Her past history included uveitis at age 39. Medical examinations led to a diagnosis of neurosarcoidosis. Although she was treated with prednisolone, her symptoms remained, so she received steroid pulse therapy twice, and administration of azathioprine. In early January 2007, a chest X-ray film showed nodules in the right upper lung that rapidly increased in size and number. A CT scan revealed multiple nodules including cavitary lesions in both lung fields. Examination of bronchial lavage fluid and a transbronchial lung biopsy showed a mycelium-like gram-negative filament. After the treatment with benzylpenicillin for 1 month, her laboratory data and radiological abnormalities markedly ima proved. However, switching to oral administration of amoxicillin caused the regrowth of the nodules. She was retreated with intravenous benzylpenicillin for 8 weeks, followed by oral administration of amoxicillin for 5 months, and her condition completely resolved. The causative organism was identified as Rothia aeria (described in 2004) by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. This is the first report of a case of pulmonary infection with this species.
Abstract There has been limited data discussing the relationship between apparent treatment-resistant hypertension (ATRH) and cardiovascular disease risk in patients receiving maintenance hemodialysis. We analyzed data for 2999 hypertensive patients on maintenance hemodialysis. ATRH was defined as uncontrolled blood pressure despite the use of three or more classes of antihypertensive medications, or four or more classes of antihypertensive medications regardless of blood pressure level. We examined the relationships between ATRH and cardiovascular events using a Cox proportional hazards model. The proportion of participants with ATRH was 18.0% (539/2999). During follow-up (median: 106.6 months, interquartile range: 51.3–121.8 months), 931 patients experienced cardiovascular events including coronary heart disease (n = 424), hemorrhagic stroke (n = 158), ischemic stroke (n = 344), and peripheral arterial disease (n = 242). Compared with the non-ATRH group, the ATRH group showed a significant increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.27; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.08–1.49), coronary heart disease (HR: 1.28; 95% CI: 1.01–1.62), ischemic stroke (HR: 1.31; 95% CI: 1.01–1.69), and peripheral arterial disease (HR: 1.42; 95% CI: 1.06–1.91) even after adjusting for potential confounders. This study demonstrated that ATRH was significantly associated with increased cardiovascular risk in hemodialysis patients.
Introduction: Cancer constitutes a major source of morbidity and mortality among people undergoing hemodialysis (HD). A systemic inflammatory response is associated with the incidence and prognosis of cancer in the general population. However, the effect of systemic inflammation on cancer-related mortality in patients undergoing HD remains unclear. Methods: We analyzed 3,139 patients registered in the Q-Cohort Study, which is a multicenter, observational cohort study of patients on hemodialysis in Japan. The primary outcome was cancer-related mortality during a 10-year follow-up. The covariate of interest was serum C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations at baseline. The patients were divided into tertiles based on their serum CRP concentrations at baseline (tertile [T] 1: ≤0.07; T2: 0.08–0.24; and T3: ≥0.25). The association between serum CRP concentrations and cancer-related mortality was calculated using the Cox proportional hazards model and the Fine-Gray subdistribution hazards model with non-cancer-related death as a competing risk. Results: During the 10-year follow-up, 216 patients died of cancer. In the multivariable analysis, the risk of cancer-related mortality in the highest tertile (T3) of serum CRP concentrations was significantly higher than that in the lowest tertile (T1) (multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.68 [1.15–2.44]). This association remained consistent in the competing risk model, in which the subdistribution hazard ratio was 1.47 and the 95% confidence interval was 1.00–2.14 for T3 compared with T1. Conclusion: Higher serum CRP concentrations are associated with an increased risk of cancer-related mortality in patients undergoing maintenance HD.
Introduction: The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes guidelines recognize the importance of causes of chronic kidney disease (CKD), glomerular filtration rate, and albuminuria as predictors of kidney outcome and prognosis. However, compared with biopsy-proven causes, there has been limited research regarding the relationship between clinically diagnosed causes of CKD and patient prognosis. Methods: We examined 3,119 patients with non-dialysis-dependent CKD who participated in the Fukuoka Kidney disease Registry Study, a multicenter prospective cohort study. Patients were divided into six groups: IgA nephropathy, chronic glomerulonephritis (non-biopsy-proven), diabetic nephropathy, hypertensive nephrosclerosis, chronic interstitial nephritis, and polycystic kidney disease. The primary outcomes included a composite kidney outcome, defined as a 1.5-fold increase in serum creatinine and/or the development of end-stage kidney disease, and all-cause mortality. The risks of these outcomes were estimated using a Fine–Gray proportional subdistribution hazards model. Patients with IgA nephropathy, the most prevalent primary glomerulonephritis, served as the reference group. Results: During the median follow-up period of 5 years, 1,221 patients developed the composite kidney outcome, and 346 patients died. Compared with IgA nephropathy, the multivariable-adjusted subdistribution hazard ratios (sHRs) for the composite kidney outcome were significantly higher in diabetic nephropathy (sHR 1.45) and polycystic kidney disease (sHR 2.07) groups, whereas the chronic interstitial nephritis group had a significantly lower risk (sHR 0.71). The risk of all-cause mortality was significantly higher in the hypertensive nephrosclerosis group (sHR 1.90). Conclusion: The causes of CKD were associated with risks of the composite kidney outcome and all-cause mortality, highlighting their clinical relevance in predicting prognosis. These findings suggest that different causes of CKD have distinct impacts on patient outcomes, emphasizing the importance of tailoring management strategies according to the underlying causes.
Abstract Background: A survival advantage of women is observed in the general population. However, inconsistent findings have been reported regarding this advantage in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis. The aim of this study was to compare the risk of mortality, especially infection-related mortality, between male and female hemodialysis patients. Methods : A total of 3065 Japanese hemodialysis patients aged ≥18 years old were followed up for 10 years. Primary outcome was all-cause and infection-related mortality. The association between the sex and these outcomes were examined using Cox proportional hazards models. Results: During the median follow-up of 8.8 years, 1498 patients died of any cause, and 387 died of infection. Compared with men, the multivariable-adjusted HRs (95% CIs) for all-cause and infection-related mortality in women were 0.51 (0.45–0.58) and 0.36 (0.27–0.47), respectively. This association remained significant even when the propensity score-matching or inverse probability of treatment weighting adjustment methods were employed. Furthermore, even when the non-infection-related mortality was considered a competing risk, the infection-related mortality rate in women was still significantly lower than that in men. Conclusions: A female survival advantage over men is observed in Japanese patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis.
Aim: Sudden death is one of the most common causes of death among hemodialysis patients. Electrocardiography (ECG) is a noninvasive and inexpensive test that is regularly performed in hemodialysis clinics. However, the association between abnormal ECG findings and the risk of sudden death in hemodialysis patients is yet to be fully elucidated. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the ECG parameters linked to sudden death in patients undergoing hemodialysis.
