Comparison of C-reactive protein levels with delivered dose of Kt/V in patients with end-stage renal disease on maintenance hemodialysis.

The objective of our study is to compare the C-reactive protein (CRP) levels with the delivered dose of dialysis in terms of Kt/V in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis (HD). This is a comparative, cross-sectional survey. The study was conducted at the HD unit of the Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan. Patients who fulfilled the inclusion and exclusion criteria were enrolled in this study. The delivered dose of HD (Kt/V) was assessed by an online clearance module (OCM) in Fresenius machines at the end of every dialysis session and the weekly Kt/V was determined by adding all three Kt/V values. The serum CRP sample was taken after each session of HD and the mean CRP was calculated and considered elevated if it was >6 mg/dL. Both weekly Kt/V and CRP values were entered in a pre-designed proforma. Data were analyzed by using statistical software SPSS and P-value £0.05 was considered significant. Of 100 patients on maintenance HD, high serum CRP level (>6 mg/dL) was found in 38 patients. When the Kt/V was compared with the CRP level, there was a negative correlation between the two parameters (r = 0.212, P = 0.032). Low Kt/V means dialysis inadequacy, which is associated with chronic inflammatory state, resulting in high CRP levels. We suggest that the quality of life of dialysis patients can be improved by offering an adequate dose of HD reflected by Kt/V ≥3.6/week.