Ambulatory monitoring unmasks hypertension among kidney transplant patients: single center experience and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Disagreements between clinic and ambulatory blood pressure (BP) measurements are well-described in the general population. Though hypertension is frequent in renal transplant recipients, only a few studies address the clinic-ambulatory discordance in this population. We aimed to describe the difference between clinic and ambulatory BP in kidney transplant patients at our institution. METHODS: We compared the clinic and ambulatory BP of 76 adult recipients of a kidney allograft followed at our transplant center and investigated the difference between these methods, considering confounding by demographic and clinical variables. RESULTS: Clinic systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) were 128 ± 13/79 ± 9 mmHg. Awake SBP and DBP were 147 ± 18/85 ± 10 mmHg. The clinic-minus-awake SBP and DBP differences were - 18 and - 6 mmHg, respectively. The negative clinic-awake ΔSBP was more pronounced at age > 60 years (p = 0.026) and with tacrolimus use compared to cyclosporine (p = 0.046). Sleep SBP and DBP were 139 ± 21/78 ± 11 mmHg. A non-dipping sleep BP pattern was noted in 73% of patients and was associated with tacrolimus use (p = 0.020). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest pervasive underestimation of BP when measured in the kidney transplant clinic, emphasizes the high frequency of a non-dipping pattern in this population and calls for liberal use of ambulatory BP monitoring to detect and manage hypertension.

Bleeding Risk Assessment and the Role of Primary Hemostasis Screening in Patients Undergoing Kidney Biopsy.

BACKGROUND: Risk factors for bleeding complications after percutaneous kidney biopsy (PKB) and the role of primary hemostasis screening are not well established. OBJECTIVES: To determine the role of primary hemostasis screening and complication outcomes among individuals who underwent PKB. METHODS: We reviewed data of 456 patients who underwent PKB from 2010 to 2016 in a large university hospital. In 2015, bleeding time (BT) testing was replaced by light transmission aggregometry (LTA) as a pre-PKB screening test. RESULTS: Of the 370 patients who underwent pre-PKB hemostasis screening by BT testing, prolonged BT was observed in 42 (11.3%). Of the 86 who underwent LTA, an abnormal response was observed in 14 (16.3%). Overall, 155 (34.0%) patients experienced bleeding: 145 (31.8%) had minor events (hemoglobin fall of 1-2 g/dl, macroscopic hematuria, perinephric hematoma without the need for transfusion or intervention) and 17 (3.7%) had major events (hemoglobin fall > 2 g/dl, blood transfusion or further intervention). Abnormal LTA response did not correlate with bleeding (P = 0.80). In multivariate analysis, only prolonged BT (P = 0.0001) and larger needle size (P = 0.005) were identified as independent predictors of bleeding. CONCLUSIONS: Bleeding complications following PKB were common and mostly minor, and the risk of major bleeding was low. Larger needle size and prolonged BT were associated with a higher bleeding risk. Due to the relatively low risk of major bleeding and lack of benefit of prophylactic intervention, the use of pre-PKB hemostasis screening remains unestablished.

Association between patient age, volume of breast tissue excised, and local recurrence.

INTRODUCTION: Young breast cancer patients undergoing breast-conserving surgery have a significantly higher rate of local recurrence compared with older women. The aim of this study was to assess whether the volume of tissue excised may be associated with the higher local recurrence rate seen in young patients. METHODS: Medical records of patients who underwent breast-conserving surgery at a single institution between 1987 and 2001 were reviewed retrospectively. Tumor and specimen volumes were extracted from pathology reports, and specimen-to-tumor-volume ratio (STVR) was calculated. STVR and local recurrence rates were compared for women under 40 and over 50 y of age. RESULTS: Data were available for 97 patients under age 40 and 150 women over age 50. Patients under 40 had significantly more high-grade tumors (57% versus 25%, P < 0.0005). There was no significant difference in average tumor size; however, both specimen volume and STVR (log scale) were lower in younger women: 4.63 versus 5.20, P < 0.001 and 3.81 versus 4.55, P < 0.001, respectively. Younger women also had a significantly higher rate of local recurrence: 17% versus 7%, P = 0.03. On multivariate analysis, lower STVR was significantly associated with a higher recurrence rate for the entire group (P < 0.005) and, to a lesser degree, in younger women (P = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The volume of tissue removed in women younger than 40 undergoing breast-conserving therapy tends to be smaller than in older women. This may contribute to the higher local recurrence rates observed in young breast cancer patients.

Scattered striated persistent nephrogram in sepsis.

Persistent nephrogram, the hallmark of radiocontrast-induced kidney failure, is usually homogenous throughout the kidney and is considered as a generalized shutoff of glomerular filtration, the consequence of altered glomerular hemodynamics, affecting most glomeruli. Herein, we report an incidental finding of scattered persistent nephrogram that was noted in a septic prediabetic hypertensive patient during computerized tomography-guided drainage of a liver abscess. The peculiar patchy striated distribution pattern suggests more centrally altered renal hemodynamics, with hypoperfusion at the level of interlobar and intralobular arteries. Altered renal microcirculation in this case is likely related to the combined effects of prediabetes, sepsis and contrast medium upon renal blood flow regulation, perhaps with consequent focal hypoxic tubular damage.