P wave dispersion and maximum P wave duration are associated with renal outcomes in chronic kidney disease

P wave parameters measured by 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) are commonly used as a noninvasive tool to evaluate left atrial enlargement. This study was designed to assess whether P wave parameters were associated with renal outcomes in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. This longitudinal study enrolled 439 patients with CKD stages 3-5. Renal end points were defined as the commencement of dialysis or death. Change in renal function was measured using the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) slope. We measured two ECG P wave parameters corrected for heart rate, i.e., corrected P wave dispersion and corrected maximum P wave duration. The values of P wave dispersion and maximum P wave duration were 88.8±21.7 ms and 153.3±21.7 ms, respectively. During the follow-up period (mean, 25.2 months), 95 patients (21.6%) started hemodialysis and 30 deaths (6.8%) were recorded. Multivariate Cox regression analysis identified that increased P wave dispersion [hazard ratio (HR), 1.020; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.009-1.032; P<0.001] and maximum P wave duration (HR, 1.013; 95% CI, 1.003-1.024; P = 0.012) were associated with progression to renal end points. Furthermore, increased P wave dispersion (unstandardized coefficient β = -0.016; P = 0.037) and maximum P wave duration (unstandardized coefficient β = -0.014; P = 0.040) were negatively associated with the eGFR slope. We demonstrated that increased P wave dispersion and maximum P wave duration were associated with progression to the renal end points of dialysis or death and faster renal function decline in CKD patients. Screening CKD patients on the basis of P wave dispersion and maximum P wave duration may help identify patients at high risk for worse renal outcomes.