Prevalence and risk factors for peripheral artery disease among patients on maintenance peritoneal dialysis

Cardiovascular disease is common in end-stage renal disease patients and accounts for more than half of the mortalities. Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is frequently found in this population and is an independent predictor of cardiovascular mortality. However, there have been limited studies reporting the prevalence and risk factors for PAD among patients on maintenance continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) therapy.

343 CAPD patients from our clinic were recruited, and PAD was diagnosed using a value of ankle-brachial index <0.9. Both traditional and dialysis-related factors were evaluated.

The prevalence of PAD was 27.4% in all patients, which increased to 45% in patients aged >70 years. In age- and gender-adjusted logistic regression, diabetes mellitus (OR 2.354, 95% CI 1.288-4.3), diastolic blood pressure (OR 0.964, 95% CI 0.939-0.989), extracellular/intracellular water ratio (OR 2.504, 95% CI 1.067-5.804), and lnCRP (OR 1.251, 95% CI 1.031-1.518) were independently associated with PAD.

Our study suggested that PAD is a common problem in patients on maintenance peritoneal dialysis, especially in elderly dialysis subjects. Diabetes mellitus, elevated hsCRP level, and extracellular/intracellular water ratio are all independent risk factors for PAD. It also suggested that aggressive risk factor management for PAD should be undertaken in CAPD patients.