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Albuminuria, renal function and blood pressure in undernourished children and recovered from undernutrition
Vinicius J B Martins1, Ricardo Sesso2, Ana P G Clemente3
1Department of Physiology and Pathology, Federal University of Paraíba, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Campus I, Cidade Universitária, 58051-900, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil. viniciusjbmartins@gmail.com.
Insights
Children who experienced stunted growth showed increased risk for albuminuria, while recovered and stunted children had lower blood pressure. Renal function remained normal in underweight and recovered children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nephrology
- Nutritional Science
- Public Health
Background:
- Undernutrition in childhood can have long-term health consequences.
- Assessing renal function and blood pressure is crucial for monitoring recovery.
- Biomarkers help evaluate the impact of nutritional status on kidney health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate biomarkers of renal function in children who recovered from undernutrition.
- To compare renal function and blood pressure across different nutritional status groups.
- To identify risks associated with undernutrition and recovery.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional comparative study with 126 children aged 6-16 years.
- Classified children into four groups: well-nourished, stunted, underweight, and recovered.
- Assessed albuminuria, serum creatinine, cystatin C, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP).
Main Results:
- No significant differences in mean albuminuria, creatinine, cystatin C, or eGFR between groups.
- Stunted children had a significantly higher risk of albuminuria (>30 mg/g creatinine).
- Lower SBP and DBP were observed in stunted and recovered groups compared to controls; DBP remained lower in the recovered group after height adjustment.
Conclusions:
- Children with stunted growth face an elevated risk of albuminuria.
- Lower diastolic blood pressure was noted in children with stunted growth and those recovered from undernutrition.
- No significant renal function alterations were found in underweight or recovered children.
Background:
The objective of this study was to investigate some biomarkers of renal function and blood pressure in children who had recovered from undernutrition.
Methods:
This was cross-sectional, comparative study in which a convenience sample of children of both genders (n = 126; age range 6-16 years) treated at the Centre for Nutritional Recovery and Education (São Paulo, Brazil) was used. These children were classified into four groups for analysis: (1) children who were well nourished (control group; n = 50), (2) those showing stunted growth (stunted group; n = 22), (3) those who were underweight (underweight group; n = 23) and (4) those who had recovered from undernutrition (recovered group; n = 31).
Results:
No between-group differences were found for mean levels of albuminuria, serum creatinine and cystatin C, and similar mean estimates of glomerular filtration rate (eGFR; using either creatinine, cystatin C or both). Almost 14% of the stunted group, 4% of the underweight group and 3% of the recovered group had albuminuria of >30 mg/g creatinine (chi-square p = 0.034); none of the control children showed albuminuria of >30 mg/g creatinine. Mean systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) adjusted for age and gender of the children in the stunted [SBP (95% confidence interval): 92 (88-96) mmHg; DBP: 47 (44-49) mmHg] and recovered [SBP: 93 (90-96) mmHg; DBP: 49 (47-51) mmHg] groups were significantly lower than those of the controls [SBP: 98 (95-100) mmHg, P = 0.027; DBP: 53 (52-55) mmHg, P = 0.001]. After additional adjustment for height, mean DBP remained significantly lower in the recovered group compared with the control group [49 (46-51) vs. 53 (51-55) mmHg, respectively; P = 0.018). Logistic regression analysis showed that the stunted group had a 8.4-fold higher chance of developing albuminuria (>10 mg/g creatinine) than the control children (P = 0.006).
Conclusions:
No alterations in renal function were found in underweight children and those who had recovered from undernutrition, whereas children with stunted growth presented with a greater risk for albuminuria. A lower DBP was found in children with stunted growth and those who had recovered from undernutrition.
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