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Pulmonary calcifications in children on dialysis
Nephron
|January 1, 1986
Summary
Pulmonary calcifications are common in children on long-term dialysis, often linked to elevated serum aluminum levels. Bone-seeking radionuclide scans can detect these subclinical deposits.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Pediatrics
- Radiology
Background:
- Pulmonary calcifications are a known complication in patients with chronic renal failure.
- Subclinical pulmonary calcium deposits can be detected using bone-seeking radionuclide scintigraphy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the frequency of pulmonary calcification in children undergoing maintenance dialysis.
- To identify potential risk factors associated with pulmonary calcification in this pediatric population.
Main Methods:
- Studied 18 children on maintenance dialysis with no chest X-ray evidence of pulmonary calcification.
- Utilized technetium 99m hydroxymethylene diphosphate scans to detect pulmonary calcification.
- Compared serum levels of aluminum, calcium, phosphorus, and other relevant biochemical markers between groups.
Main Results:
- 22.2% of children (4 out of 18) showed positive scintigrams for pulmonary calcification.
- Significantly higher mean serum aluminum levels were observed in children with pulmonary calcification (2.68 mumol/l vs 1.66 mumol/l).
- Patients with pulmonary calcification had been on dialysis significantly longer (62 months vs 35.7 months).
Conclusions:
- Pulmonary calcification is frequent in children with long-term dialysis.
- High serum aluminum levels appear to be associated with the development of uremic pulmonary calcification.
- Routine pulmonary scintigraphy is proposed for diagnosing and monitoring uremic pulmonary calcification in children.