The impact of comorbid chronic kidney disease and diabetes on health-related quality-of-life: a 12-year community cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Quality-of-life is an essential outcome for clinical care. Both chronic kidney disease (CKD) and diabetes have been associated with poorer quality-of-life. The combined impact of having both diseases is less well understood. As diabetes is the most common cause of CKD, it is imperative that we deepen our understanding of their joint impact. METHODS: This was a prospective, longitudinal cohort study of community-based Australians aged ≥25 years who participated in the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle study. Quality-of-life was measured by physical component summary (PCS) and mental component summary sub-scores of the Short Form (36) Health Survey. Univariate and multivariate linear mixed effect regressions were performed. RESULTS: Of the 11 081 participants with quality-of-life measurements at baseline, 1112 had CKD, 1001 had diabetes and of these 271 had both. Of the 1112 with CKD 421 had Stage 1, 314 had Stage 2, 346 had Stage 3 and 31 had Stages 4/5. Adjusted linear mixed effect models showed baseline PCS was lower for those with both CKD and diabetes compared with either disease alone (P < 0.001). Longitudinal analysis demonstrated a more rapid decline in PCS in those with both diseases. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of CKD and diabetes has a powerful adverse impact on quality-of-life, and participants with both diseases had significantly poorer quality-of-life than those with one condition.

The impact of progressive chronic kidney disease on health-related quality-of-life: a 12-year community cohort study.

PURPOSE: Quality-of-life is poor in end-stage kidney disease; however, the relationships between earlier stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and are poorly understood. This study explored longitudinal quality-of-life changes in a community-based CKD cohort and assessed associations between CKD and quality-of-life over time, and between baseline quality-of-life and CKD outcomes. METHODS: We used the Australian diabetes, obesity and lifestyle study-a nationally representative, prospective cohort with data collected at baseline, year 5 and year 12-to examine the relationships between CKD stage, quality-of-life and outcomes. Linear mixed regression, cox proportional hazards, Kaplan-Meier and competing risks analyses were used. RESULTS: Of 1112 participants with CKD and baseline quality-of-life data, the physical component summary (PCS) score was significantly lower than for the general population (p = 0.01 age and sex adjusted), while the mental component summary (MCS) score was no different (p = 0.9 age and sex adjusted). In our unadjusted mixed effects model, more advanced kidney disease was associated with lower PCS and higher MCS at baseline (p < 0.001 and p < 0.01, respectively); however, this effect was no longer significant after adjustment for demographic and clinical variables. The rate of decline in PCS over the period of follow-up was greatest for those with more advanced kidney disease (p < 0.001 in unadjusted model, p = 0.007 in adjusted model). There was no association between change in MCS over the period of follow-up and severity of kidney disease in either the unadjusted or adjusted model (p = 0.7 and p = 0.1, respectively). Lower PCS, but not MCS, was associated with increased cardiovascular and increased all-cause mortality even after adjustment for key demographic and clinical variables (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Physical, but not mental, quality-of-life is significantly impaired in CKD, and continues to decline with disease progression.

Physical component quality of life reflects the impact of time and moderate chronic kidney disease, unlike SF-6D utility and mental component SF-36 quality of life: An AusDiab analysis.

AIM: Assessing the impact of interventions on the patient experience requires measures that are plausibly responsive to change. In a community cohort of people with and without chronic kidney disease (CKD) markers at baseline, we aimed to evaluate change in commonly used measures of quality of life (QOL) over the passage of 5 years. METHODS: Included were 6400 participants in the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle (AusDiab) surveys with baseline and 5-year CKD and QOL measures. Changes in SF-6D utility, and the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form (SF-36) physical (PCS) and mental (MCS) component summary scores, were evaluated with regression analyses according to the baseline presence of reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (CKD-Epidemiology Collaboration eGFR ≤60 m/min per 1.73 m2 ) or albuminuria (urine albumin:creatinine ratio ≥3.4 mg/mmol). RESULTS: At baseline, eGFR was reduced in 2.4% of participants and 5.1% had albuminuria. Participants with reduced eGFR had a lower SF-6D and PCS, and those with albuminuria a lower PCS, compared with those without, but the differences were explained by known confounders. MCS scores were not affected by the presence of reduced eGFR or albuminuria. Over 5 years all groups exhibited stable SF-6D and MCS scores but declining unadjusted PCS scores. PCS decline was greater for those with reduced eGFR, and remained significant after adjustment (-2.7 (-4.1 to -1.3) vs. -0.8 (-1.1 to -0.6, P < 0.01). Analyses according to CKD stages were essentially unchanged. CONCLUSION: Utility and mental QOL appears stable over 5 years, unaffected by time or markers of CKD health. Physical QOL appeared to deteriorate with time, especially for those with CKD, making it a more likely candidate assessment measure for intervention and health service evaluations.

Sex-Based Differences in Risk Factors and Complications of Chronic Kidney Disease.

Globally, females are ∼30% more likely to have pre-dialysis chronic kidney disease (CKD) than males for reasons that are not fully understood. CKD is associated with numerous adverse health outcomes which makes understanding and working to eradicating sex based disparities in CKD prevalence essential. This review maps both what is known, and what is unknown, about the way sex and gender impacts (1) the epidemiology and risk factors for CKD including age, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, smoking, and cerebrovascular disease, and (2) the complications from CKD including kidney disease progression, cardiovascular disease, CKD mineral and bone disorders, anaemia, quality-of-life, cancer and mortality. This mapping can be used to guide future research.

Cardiac Mortality in Kidney Transplant Patients: A Population-based Cohort Study 1988-2013 in Australia and New Zealand.

BACKGROUND: Transplant recipients experience excess cardiac mortality. We compared circulatory death rates in Australian and New Zealand kidney transplant recipients to the general population and identified risk factors for circulatory death in kidney transplant recipients. METHODS: The primary cause of death for kidney transplant recipients aged ≥18 was established through ICD-10-AM codes using data linkage between the Australia and New Zealand dialysis and transplant registry and national death registers. We estimated standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) and developed a Fine-Gray competing risks model to determine risk factors for cardiac mortality. RESULTS: Of 5089 deaths in 16 329 kidney transplant recipients (158 325 person-years), 918 (18%) were cardiac. An increased risk of circulatory death was associated with older age (P < 0.001), male sex (P < 0.001), longer dialysis duration (P = 0.004), earlier era of transplantation (P < 0.001), ever graft failure (P < 0.001), known coronary artery disease (P = 0.002), and kidney failure from diabetes or hypertension (P < 0.001). The cardiac SMR was 5.4 [95% confidence interval (CI): 5.0-5.8], falling from 8.0 (95% CI: 4.9-13.1) in 1988 to 5.3 (95% CI: 4.0-7.0) in 2013 (P < 0.001). Females, particularly young ones, had significantly higher relative cardiac mortality than men. In recipients aged 40 years, the cardiac SMR was 26.5 (95% CI: 15.0-46.6) in females and 7.5 (95% CI: 5.0-11.1) for males. CONCLUSIONS: Cardiac risks remain elevated in kidney transplant recipients and may be under-recognized, and prevention and treatment interventions less accessed, less effective or even harmful in female recipients.