Nutritional and Anthropometric Indices in Children Receiving Haemodiafiltration vs Conventional Haemodialysis - The HDF, Heart and Height (3H) Study.

BACKGROUND: The "HDF-Heart-Height" study showed that haemodiafiltration (HDF) is associated with improved growth compared to conventional haemodialysis (HD). We report a post-hoc analysis of this study assessing the effect of extracorporeal dialysis therapies on nutritional indices. METHODS: 107 children were included in the baseline cross-sectional analysis, of whom 79 (43 HD, 36 HDF) completed the 12-month follow-up. Height (Ht), optimal 'dry' weight (Wt), and body mass index (BMI) standard deviations scores (SDS), waist-to-hip ratio, des-acyl ghrelin (DAG), adiponectin, leptin, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1)-SDS and insulin were measured. RESULTS: The levels of nutritional indices were comparable between HDF and HD patients at baseline and 12-month. On univariable analyses Wt-SDS positively correlated with leptin and IGF-1-SDS, and negatively with DAG, while Ht-SDS of the overall cohort positively correlated with IGF1-SDS and inversely with DAG and adiponectin. On multivariable analyses, higher 12-month Ht-SDS was inversely associated with baseline DAG (beta = -0.13 per 500 higher; 95%CI -0.22, -0.04; P = .004). Higher Wt-SDS at 12-month was positively associated with HDF modality (beta = 0.47 vs HD; 95%CI 0.12-0.83; P = .01) and inversely with baseline DAG (beta = -0.18 per 500 higher; 95%CI -0.32, -0.05; P = .006). Growth Hormone (GH) treated patients receiving HDF had higher annualized increase in Ht SDS compared to those on HD. CONCLUSIONS: In children on HD and HDF both Wt- and Ht-SDS independently correlated with lower baseline levels of the anorexygenic hormone DAG. HDF may attenuate the resistance to GH, but further studies are required to examine the mechanisms linking HDF to improved growth.

Hemodiafiltration in the pediatric population.

Hemodiafiltration (HDF) is increasingly adopted as a safe and effective treatment compared to conventional hemodialysis (HD) in children. We describe the outcomes of prospective observational studies in children on HDF versus HD showing that HDF was associated with an attenuation of the cardiovascular risk profile, improved blood pressure control, reduced inflammation, improved bone health and growth, and most importantly, an improved health-related quality of life.

Hemodiafiltration maintains a sustained improvement in blood pressure compared to conventional hemodialysis in children-the HDF, heart and height (3H) study.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is prevalent in children on dialysis and associated with cardiovascular disease. We studied the blood pressure (BP) trends and the evolution of BP over 1 year in children on conventional hemodialysis (HD) vs. hemodiafiltration (HDF). METHODS: This is a post hoc analysis of the "3H - HDF-Hearts-Height" dataset, a multicenter, parallel-arm observational study. Seventy-eight children on HD and 55 on HDF who had three 24-h ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) measures over 1 year were included. Mean arterial pressure (MAP) was calculated and hypertension defined as 24-h MAP standard deviation score (SDS) ≥95th percentile. RESULTS: Poor agreement between pre-dialysis systolic BP-SDS and 24-h MAP was found (mean difference - 0.6; 95% limits of agreement -4.9-3.8). At baseline, 82% on HD and 44% on HDF were hypertensive, with uncontrolled hypertension in 88% vs. 25% respectively; p < 0.001. At 12 months, children on HDF had consistently lower MAP-SDS compared to those on HD (p < 0.001). Over 1-year follow-up, the HD group had mean MAP-SDS increase of +0.98 (95%CI 0.77-1.20; p < 0.0001), whereas the HDF group had a non-significant increase of +0.15 (95%CI -0.10-0.40; p = 0.23). Significant predictors of MAP-SDS were dialysis modality (ß = +0.83 [95%CI +0.51 - +1.15] HD vs. HDF, p < 0.0001) and higher inter-dialytic-weight-gain (IDWG)% (ß = 0.13 [95%CI 0.06-0.19]; p = 0.0003). CONCLUSIONS: Children on HD had a significant and sustained increase in BP over 1 year compared to a stable BP in those on HDF, despite an equivalent dialysis dose. Higher IDWG% was associated with higher 24-h MAP-SDS in both groups.

Acute Kidney Injury in Critically Ill Children: A Retrospective Analysis of Risk Factors.

INTRODUCTION: Children admitted to paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) are at risk of acute kidney injury (AKI). However, few paediatric studies have focused on the identification of factors potentially associated with the development of this condition. The aim of our study was to assess the incidence rate of AKI, identify risk factors, and evaluate clinical outcome in a large sample of critically ill children. METHODS: This retrospective observational study was conducted including patients admitted to our PICU from January 2014 to December 2016. AKI was defined according to Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcome criteria. RESULTS: A total of 222 PICU patients out of 811 (27%) had AKI (stage I 39%, stage II 24%, stage III 37%). The most common PICU admission diagnoses in AKI cases were heart disease (38.6%), respiratory failure (16.8%) and postsurgical non-cardiac patients (11%). Hypoxic-ischaemic was the most frequent cause of AKI. Significant risk factors for AKI following multivariate analysis were age >2 months (OR 2.43; 95% CI 1.03-7.87; p = 0.05), serum creatinine at admission >44 µmol/L (OR 2.23; 95% CI 1.26-3.94; p = 0.006), presence of comorbidities (OR 1.84; 95% CI 1.03-3.30; p = 0.04), use of inotropes (OR 2.56; 95% CI 1.23-5.35; p= 0.012) and diuretics (OR 2.78; 95% CI 1.49-5.19; p = 0.001), exposure to nephrotoxic drugs (OR 1.66; 95% CI 1.01-2.91; p= 0.04), multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (OR 2.68; 95% CI 1.43-5.01; p = 0.002), and coagulopathy (OR 1.89; 95% CI 1.05-3.38, p = 0.03). AKI was associated with a significant longer PICU stay (median LOS of 8 days, interquartile range [IQR] 3-16, versus 4 days, IQR 2-8, in non-AKI patients; p < 0.001). The mortality rate resulted tenfold higher in AKI than non-AKI patients (12.6 vs. 1.2%; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of AKI in critically ill children is high, with an associated increased length of stay and risk of mortality. In the PICU setting, risk factors of AKI are multiple and mainly associated with illness severity.

Hemodiafiltration Is Associated With Reduced Inflammation and Increased Bone Formation Compared With Conventional Hemodialysis in Children: The HDF, Hearts and Heights (3H) Study.

BACKGROUND: Patients on dialysis have a high burden of bone-related comorbidities, including fractures. We report a post hoc analysis of the prospective cohort study HDF, Hearts and Heights (3H) to determine the prevalence and risk factors for chronic kidney disease-related bone disease in children on hemodiafiltration (HDF) and conventional hemodialysis (HD). METHODS: The baseline cross-sectional analysis included 144 children, of which 103 (61 HD, 42 HDF) completed 12-month follow-up. Circulating biomarkers of bone formation and resorption, inflammatory markers, fibroblast growth factor-23, and klotho were measured. RESULTS: Inflammatory markers interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein were lower in HDF than in HD cohorts at baseline and at 12 months (P < .001). Concentrations of bone formation (bone-specific alkaline phosphatase) and resorption (tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b) markers were comparable between cohorts at baseline, but after 12-months the bone-specific alkaline phosphatase/tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b ratio increased in HDF (P = .004) and was unchanged in HD (P = .44). On adjusted analysis, the bone-specific alkaline phosphatase/tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b ratio was 2.66-fold lower (95% confidence interval, -3.91 to -1.41; P < .0001) in HD compared with HDF. Fibroblast growth factor-23 was comparable between groups at baseline (P = .52) but increased in HD (P < .0001) and remained unchanged in HDF (P = .34) at 12 months. Klotho levels were similar between groups and unchanged during follow-up. The fibroblast growth factor-23/klotho ratio was 3.86-fold higher (95% confidence interval, 2.15-6.93; P < .0001) after 12 months of HD compared with HDF. CONCLUSION: Children on HDF have an attenuated inflammatory profile, increased bone formation, and lower fibroblast growth factor-23/klotho ratios compared with those on HD. Long-term studies are required to determine the effects of an improved bone biomarker profile on fracture risk and cardiovascular health.