Low intracellular water and incident cognitive impairment in chronic hemodialysis patients.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of intracellular water (ICW) evaluated by the bioelectrical Impedance Spectroscopy (BIS) on the risk of incident cognitive impairment (CI) in chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients. METHODS: Three thousand three hundred eighty-five patients were recruited and monitored prospectively for up to 3 years (the median follow-up time, 2 years) in this observational cohort study. Mini-Mental State Examination score (MMSE) was used to assess the global cognitive function. ICW was measured by body composition monitor based on BIS. Multiple Cox regression models, stratified analyses, and interactive analyses were conducted. RESULTS: During the follow-up period, 1256 patients (37.1%) experienced incident CI. The incidence of CI was increased with decreasing quartiles of ICW (27.4%, 32.2%, 38.9%, and 50.1% for the fourth, third, second, and first quartiles, respectively). Decreased ICW was significantly associated with incident CI. The association remained statistically significant even after adjusting for age, sex, education, albumin, C-reactive protein, residual renal function and various medical histories. The hazard ratios were 1.38 (1.17-1.64) and 1.28 (1.08-1.52) for ICW quartile 1 and quartile 2, respectively (reference, quartile 4). The association stably existed across subgroups, and the residual renal function had an interactive role in the association between ICW and incident CI (p = 0.014). CONCLUSION: Low baseline ICW was an independent risk factor for CI in chronic HD patients. Our finding highlights the necessity of using BIS to measure body composition when assessing the risk of CI in HD patients.

Decreased intracellular water is associated with sarcopenic obesity in chronic haemodialysis patients.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the association between intracellular water (ICW) and sarcopenic obesity in patients undergoing chronic haemodialysis (HD). METHODS: A multicentre, cross-sectional study of 3354 adult chronic HD patients was conducted in 20 haemodialysis centres from June 1, 2021, to August 30, 2021. The diagnosis of sarcopenic obesity was made according to the revised Asian Working Group's definition of sarcopenia combined with obesity per the body fat percentage definition. Body composition was evaluated by a body composition monitor using bioimpedance spectroscopy. Multiple logistic regression models, stratified analyses, interactive analyses, and receiver-operating characteristic analyses were conducted. RESULTS: A total of 752 patients were diagnosed with sarcopenic obesity among 3354 participants. The patients were grouped by sex-specific ICW median levels, and the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity was significantly higher in the low ICW group than in the high ICW group (41.3%vs 3.0%). Decreased ICW was significantly associated with sarcopenic obesity. The association remained statistically significant even after adjusting for dialysis vintage, age, body mass index, biochemical indicators, and various medical histories. The odds ratios of the low ICW group were much higher than those of the high ICW group in both males and females (P for trend < 0.001). The association was stable across subgroups, and the interaction analysis showed that age, body mass index and history of diabetes had interactive roles in the association between ICW and sarcopenic obesity (P for interaction < 0.05). Furthermore, the ICW cut-off values for identifying sarcopenic obesity were 19.1 kg and 14.5 kg for males and females, respectively. CONCLUSION: Decreased ICW was an independent risk factor for sarcopenic obesity in chronic HD patients. The measurement of ICW by bioimpedance spectroscopy might be a non-invasive and valid means for identifying the risk of future sarcopenic obesity in HD patients.

Muscle strength performed better than muscle mass in identifying cognitive impairment risk in maintenance hemodialysis patients.

OBJECTIVES: The association between muscle mass and cognitive impairment (CI) is conflicting. We aimed to evaluate and compare the associations of muscle strength, muscle mass and CI risk in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, cross-sectional study. Cognitive function was assessed with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score. Muscle strength was assessed by hand grip strength (HGS), muscle mass was assessed by lean tissue mass (LTM). Education status was divided into two groups: lower education status (senior middle school and below) and higher education status (high school and above). Multivariable logistic regression models and subgroup analyses were performed. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analyses were conducted to compare their predictive power in discriminating CI. RESULTS: 2827 adult MHD patients were included in our final analysis. Patients in the lowest quartile of HGS was 2.82-fold as likely to have CI as compared to those in the highest quartile, while participants in the lowest quartile of LTM group were 1.52-fold as likely to have CI, when compared with the highest quartile group of LTM after adjusting for age, gender and education level. The association persisted in all subgroups except for women and well-educated participants. There was a significant interaction between HGS and education status on CI and age played an interactive role in the association between LTM and incident CI (P for interaction < 0.05). The AUC value of the HGS was significantly higher than that of LTM (0.69 VS 0.63, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Muscle strength performed better than muscle mass in identifying individuals at high risk of CI, particularly in male and less educated Chinese MHD patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level V, cross-sectional study.

A New Criterion for Pediatric AKI Based on the Reference Change Value of Serum Creatinine.

BACKGROUND: Current definitions of AKI do not take into account serum creatinine's high variability in children. METHODS: We analyzed data from 156,075 hospitalized children with at least two creatinine tests within 30 days. We estimated reference change value (RCV) of creatinine on the basis of age and initial creatinine level in children without kidney disease or known AKI risk, and we used these data to develop a model for detecting pediatric AKI on the basis of RCV of creatinine. We defined pediatric AKI according to pediatric reference change value optimized for AKI in children (pROCK) as creatinine increase beyond RCV of creatinine, which was estimated as the greater of 20 µmol/L or 30% of the initial creatinine level. RESULTS: Of 102,817 children with at least two serum creatinine tests within 7 days, 5432 (5.3%) had AKI as defined by pROCK compared with 15,647 (15.2%) and 10,446 (10.2%) as defined by pediatric RIFLE (pRIFLE) and Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO), respectively. Children with pROCK-defined AKI had significantly increased risk of death (hazard ratio, 3.56; 95% confidence interval, 3.15 to 4.04) compared with those without AKI. About 66% of patients with pRIFLE-defined AKI and 51% of patients with KDIGO-defined AKI, mostly children with initial creatinine level of <30 µmol/L, were reclassified as non-AKI by pROCK, and mortality risk in these children was comparable with risk in those without AKI by all definitions. CONCLUSIONS: pROCK criterion improves detection of "true" AKI in children compared with earlier definitions that may lead to pediatric AKI overdiagnosis.

Monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio and gastrointestinal disorder-related hospitalization in patients on maintenance hemodialysis.

INTRODUCTION: To explore the association between monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) and the risk of hospitalization due to gastrointestinal (GI) disorder in hemodialysis (HD) patients. METHODS: In this multicenter, observational cohort study, 1626 patients were enrolled in 2019 and followed up to 2 years. Cox regression models were performed to estimate the association of MLR with GI disorder-related hospitalization risk. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analyses were conducted to evaluate the cutoff value of MLR in identifying GI disorder-related hospitalization. RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 24 months, GI disorder-related hospitalization occurred in 107 patients. Higher MLR was independently associated with greater risks of GI disorder-related hospitalization. Furthermore, a cut-off value of 0.42 differentiated patients with GI disorder-related hospitalization from those without GI involvement. CONCLUSION: MLR was associated with the occurrence of GI disorder-related hospitalization in HD patients. The blood MLR could be monitored as a useful marker to predict GI disorder-related hospitalization.

A Higher Whole-Body Extracellular to Intracellular Water Ratio Is Associated with Increased Odds of Cognitive Impairment in Hemodialysis Patients.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive impairment (CI) is highly prevalent in patients undergoing hemodialysis. Whether fluid overload with malnutrition as assessed by the ratio of extracellular water to intracellular water (ECW/ICW) is associated with CI in patients on maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) has yet to be studied. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the association between ECW/ICW and CI in patients with MHD. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, cross-sectional study that enrolled 3,025 adult patients with MHD. Cognitive function was assessed through the Mini-Mental State Examination. The ECW/ICW was derived from a portable body composition monitor and analyzed by quartiles. RESULTS: 23.04% of participants had CI in our study. The prevalence of CI tended to increase as the quartiles of the ECW/ICW ratio increased. Unadjusted analysis showed that participants in quartile 4 were 3.02 times more likely to have a CI compared to those in quartile 1. After adjusting for age, sex, education, smoking status, body mass index, dialysis vintage, history of hypertension, and history of stroke, the adjusted OR (95% CI) for the highest quartile of ECW/ICW ratio was 1.36 (1.01, 1.83) for CI compared with the lowest quartile. Interestingly, the association between ECW/ICW ratio and CI persisted across all subgroups stratified by age, gender, history of diabetes, and stroke. (p for interaction > 0.05 for all). CONCLUSION: An increased ECW/ICW ratio is associated with higher odds of cognitive impairment in patients undergoing hemodialysis.

Lean-to-fat tissue ratio as a risk factor for cognitive impairment in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis.

OBJECTIVE: The relationship between body mass index (BMI) and cognitive impairment (CI) remains controversial, and no research has been done to explore the effect of lean-to-fat (L/F) tissue ratio on the risk of CI in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) so far. This study aimed to explore the effect of L/F tissue ratio on the risk of incident CI in patients undergoing MHD. METHODS: In this observational cohort study, 3356 patients were recruited and followed up for a median of 2 years. Global cognitive function was measured using Mini-Mental State Examination score. Lean tissue mass (LTM) and fat tissue mass (FTM) were analyzed using body composition monitor based on bioimpedance spectroscopy (BCM-BIS), and L/F tissue ratio was calculated by LTM divided by FTM. Hazard ratios (HRs) for incident CI were determined by Cox regression. RESULTS: The median age of the cohort was 55 years, and 68.7% patients were less educated. During the follow-up period, 1249 patients (37.2%) experienced incident CI. Patients with lower L/F tissue ratios had significantly higher risks of CI (HR 1.51, 95% confidence interval 1.24-1.84; p < 0.001) than those with higher L/F tissue ratios. The association between L/F tissue ratio and incident CI persisted in all subgroups stratified by sex, age, education status, especially in older and less educated participants. Both in all our patients and subgroups, BMI and CI occurrence were not independently relevant. CONCLUSION: The L/F tissue ratio rather than BMI was an independent risk factor of incident cognitive impairment in patients undergoing MHD.

Sex Differences in the Association of Weight-Adjusted-Waist Index with Sarcopenic Obesity: A Cross-Sectional Study of Hemodialysis Patients.

Objective: To explore the association between weight-adjusted-waist index (WWI) and sarcopenic obesity (SO) in patients with maintenance hemodialysis (MHD). Methods: A multicenter, cross-sectional study that included 3311 adult MHD patients was conducted in 20 hemodialysis (HD) centers from June 1, 2021, to August 30, 2021. Body composition was evaluated by body composition monitor based on bioimpedance spectroscopy. Hand grip strength was measured by CAMRY® dynamometer. WWI was calculated as waist circumference (cm) divided by the square root of body weight (kg). Multiple logistic regression models, spearman correlation analysis, and receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analyses were conducted. Results: The median age of the study was 55 years, and 39.4% of patients were female. The prevalence of SO was 22.7% in the total population, and patients with SO had higher WWI. Higher WWI quartiles were independently associated with a higher risk of SO in men after adjusting for potential confounders, including age, dialysis vintage, body mass index, biochemical indicators, and various medical histories; the odds ratio (OR) of SO was highest in the fourth quartile of the WWI (OR: 4.08, 95% confidence interval: 2.65-6.27, P for trend <0.001). Age-adjusted WWI provided a better diagnostic power than WWI only for SO in men (area under the ROC curve: 0.72 vs. 0.68, P < 0.001). WWI was not associated with SO in female HD patients. Conclusion: WWI is independently associated with SO in male but not female MHD patients. This anthropometric index is simple to calculate, making it applicable in clinical practice.

Low Lean Tissue Index and Muscle Strength Combined with High Fat Tissue Index Are Associated with Cardiovascular Disease-Related Hospitalisation in Patients on Haemodialysis.

INTRODUCTION: The combined clinical impact of muscle mass, muscle function, and adipose mass on hospitalisation events, especially those that have exact causes, such as cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), had been rarely studied in patients on haemodialysis (HD). This study aimed to determine the influence of lean tissue index (LTI), fat tissue index (FTI), and hand grip strength (HGS) on the risk of CVD-related hospitalisation in patients undergoing chronic HD. METHODS: This multi-centre observational study enrolled a total of 2,041 clinically stable patients aged >18 years and who had undergone HD for at least 3 months at 17 HD units in 2019. The follow-up period was up to 2 years. LTI and FTI were assessed using a body composition monitoring machine, and HGS was measured by a CAMRY® dynamometer. Cox regression models were fit to estimate the associations of body composition and HGS with CVD-related hospitalisation risk. RESULTS: During a mean follow-up of 22.6 months, CVD-related hospitalisation occurred in 492 patients. Compared with the non-CVD group, patients with CVD-related hospitalisation were older; had lower diastolic blood pressure; were more likely to have a history of diabetes; had worse activity status scores and lower levels of LTI, HGS, serum uric acid, and serum creatinine; and had higher FTI levels, body mass index, and extracellular water/intracellular water ratio. In the Cox regression models, low LTI and high FTI were independently associated with CVD-related hospitalisation in both men and women. In men, low HGS was an independent risk factor for CVD-related hospitalisation. When patients were further stratified into four distinct groups according to the sex-specific median values of LTI and FTI, the combination of low LTI and high FTI was an independent risk factor for CVD-related hospitalization (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.79 in men, 95% confidence interval 1.26-2.55; HR = 2.48 in women, 95% confidence interval 1.66-3.71; reference: high LTI/low FTI group). CONCLUSIONS: Among patients on chronic HD, low LTI, and high FTI were associated with CVD-related hospitalisation in men and women, whereas HGS was an independent risk factor for CVD-related hospitalisation in men but not in women. Combining low LTI and high FTI increased the association with hospitalisation risk and was an independent predictor of CVD-related hospitalisation.

Higher ambient nitrogen dioxide is associated with an elevated risk of hospital-acquired acute kidney injury.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have suggested that long-term exposure to air pollution increases the risk of chronic kidney disease and its progression. However, the effect of air pollution on the risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) has not been studied. We aim to evaluate the transient effect of air pollution on the risk of hospital-acquired AKI (HA-AKI). METHODS: We selected from the Epidemiology of AKI in Chinese Hospitalized patients cohort AKI cases in which the onset date could be unambiguously determined. We obtained city-specific daily averages of the ambient level of particulate matter (2.5 µm and 10 µm), carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and ozone (O3) from the Ministry of Environmental Protection of China. We used the time-stratified case-crossover approach to examine the association between the ambient level of air pollutants and the risk of HA-AKI in the selected cases. RESULTS: A total of 11 293 AKI cases that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were selected. In univariable analysis, the ambient levels of NO2 and SO2 were significantly associated with the risk of HA-AKI. In the multivariable analysis that incorporated all six pollutants in the same model, NO2 was the sole pollutant whose level remained associated with the risk of AKI (P < 0.001). The relationship between the level of NO2 and the risk of HA-AKI appeared to be linear, with an estimated odds ratio of 1.063 (95% confidence interval 1.026-1.101) for each increment of 1 median absolute deviation in the exposure. The association was consistent across the subgroups stratified by age, gender, baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate, AKI severity, need for intensive care and season. CONCLUSIONS: Higher ambient levels of NO2 are associated with an increased risk of HA-AKI in hospitalized adults in China.

Successful treatment with plasma exchange followed by intravenous immunoglobulin in a critically ill patient with COVID-19.

Here we report a case of a laboratory-confirmed 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV)-infected patient with COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) who developed respiratory failure and shock accompanied by persistent diarrhoea despite conventional therapeutic interventions. The patient avoided mechanical ventilation and showed an immediate clinical and radiological improvement following treatment with intensive plasma exchange (PE) followed by intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Successful therapeutic strategies in this case suggest that timely initiation of PE treatment followed by IVIG in critically ill patients with COVID-19 may prevent the disease from worsening and help to reduce the requirement for mechanical ventilation and intensive supportive care. Moreover, it may improve poor clinical outcomes of these patients.

Acute Kidney Injury among Hospitalized Children in China.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: High-quality epidemiologic data on AKI in children are particularly lacking in developing countries. This study aimed to assess the epidemiology and clinical correlates of AKI among hospitalized children in China. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS: We performed a multicenter study, in a cohort of hospitalized children aged 1 month to 18 years, from 25 general and children's hospitals in China during 2013-2015. We obtained patient-level data from the electronic hospitalization information system and laboratory databases of all children who had at least two serum creatinine tests within any 7-day window during their first 30 days of hospitalization. We identified AKI events according to the creatinine criteria of Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes. The in-hospital outcomes of AKI, including mortality, kidney recovery, and length of stay, were assessed. We estimated the corresponding hazard ratios using a Cox proportional hazard model, with adjustment for age, sex, comorbidities, and clinical procedures. RESULTS: A total of 19,908 (20%) patients with AKI were identified among 101,836 pediatric inpatients, of which 7220 (7%) were community acquired and 12,688 (13%) were hospital acquired. Up to 96% of these AKI events were not diagnosed on the discharge records. The cumulative incidence of AKI in infants (28%) was twice that in adolescents (12%). The profiles of risk factors differed between community-acquired and hospital-acquired AKI and varied with age. Diarrhea and sepsis were the top risk factors for community-acquired AKI, each contributing 6% of the risk. Congenital heart disease/cardiac surgery was the major risk factor for hospital-acquired AKI, contributing to 19% of cases. Exposure to nephrotoxic drugs, mostly nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and proton pump inhibitors, was common in hospitalized children and was associated with a higher risk of AKI. Death occurred in 842 out of 19,908 patients (4%) with AKI versus 450 out of 81,478 children (0.5%) without AKI. The risk of in-hospital death was higher among children with severe AKI, shock, and respiratory failure. Pediatric AKI was associated with longer hospital stay and higher daily cost, even after adjustment for covariates. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric AKI is common and is substantially underdiagnosed in China.