Ten-Year Efficacy and Safety of Once-Daily Tacrolimus in Kidney Transplant: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Tacrolimus is a cornerstone in the immunosuppressive therapy of kidney transplantation. The once-daily formulation of tacrolimus has been shown to improve adherence of patients without affecting short-term efficacy. However, long-term proof of once-daily tacrolimus efficacy and safety is still lacking. From January 2009 to November 2013, 170 clinically stable kidney transplant patients were offered to change from the ongoing twice-daily tacrolimus (TDT) formulation to a once-daily tacrolimus (ODT) regimen. Kidney transplant recipients agreeing to the change to be treated with an ODT regimen (n = 105, estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] 57.1 ± 1.6 mL/min/1.73 m2) and patients continuing on a TDT formulation (n = 65, eGFR 52.0 ± 2.2 mL/min/1.73 m2) were prospectively followed (median follow-up time 10.4 and 12.6 years in the ODT and TDT groups, respectively, P = not significant). At the end of the follow-up, patients in both groups experienced similar eGFR (50.4 ± 2.2 vs 48.0 ± 2.7 mL/min/1.73 m2 in the ODT and TDT groups, respectively, P = not significant). No differences were observed in biopsy-proven acute rejection, overall graft survival, doubling of serum creatinine, and new onset of proteinuria. The 2 groups also had a comparable rate of death, sepsis, and neoplasia. In conclusion, ODT appears safe and effective in stable kidney graft recipients even 10 years after transplantation. These findings support the use of ODT as a primary tacrolimus formulation in patients with kidney transplantation.

Metabolic syndrome is associated with left ventricular dilatation in primary hypertension.

Metabolic syndrome (MS) has been shown to predict cardiovascular events in hypertension. Recently, a new four-group left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy classification based on both LV dilatation and concentricity was proposed. This classification has been shown to provide a more accurate prediction of cardiovascular events, suggesting that the presence of LV dilatation may add prognostic information. We investigated the relationship between MS and the new classification of LV geometry in patients with primary hypertension. A total of 372 untreated hypertensive patients were studied. Four different patterns of LV hypertrophy (eccentric nondilated, eccentric dilated, concentric nondilated and concentric dilated hypertrophy) were identified by echocardiography. A modified National Cholesterol Education Program definition for MS was used, with body mass index replacing waist circumference. The overall prevalence of MS and LV hypertrophy (LVH) was 29% and 61%, respectively. Patients with MS showed a higher prevalence of LVH (P=0.0281) and dilated LV geometries, namely eccentric dilated and concentric dilated hypertrophy (P=0.0075). Moreover, patients with MS showed higher LV end-diastolic volume (P=0.0005) and prevalence of increased LV end-diastolic volume (P=0.0068). The prevalence of LV chamber dilatation increased progressively with the number of components of MS (P=0.0191). Logistic regression analysis showed that the presence of MS entails a three times higher risk of having LV chamber dilatation even after adjusting for several potential confounding factors. MS is associated with LV dilatation in hypertension. These findings may, in part, explain the unfavourable prognosis observed in patients with MS.

Effects of peritoneal dialysis on protein metabolism.

Protein-energy wasting is relatively common in renal patients treated with haemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis (PD) and is associated with worse outcome. In this article, we review the current state of our knowledge regarding the effects of PD on protein metabolism and the possible interactions between PD-induced changes in protein turnover and the uraemia-induced alterations in protein metabolism. Available evidence shows that PD induces a new state in muscle protein dynamics, which is characterized by decreased turnover rates and a reduced efficiency of protein turnover, a condition which may be harmful in stress conditions, when nutrient intake is diminished or during superimposed catabolic illnesses. There is a need to develop more effective treatments to enhance the nutritional status of PD patients. New approaches include the use of amino acid/keto acids-containing supplements combined with physical exercise, incremental doses of intraperitoneal amino acids, vitamin D and myostatin antagonism for malnourished patients refractory to standard nutritional therapy.