Does Control Nutritional Status (CONUT) Score Predict Early and Long-Term Mortality at the Initiation of Maintenance...

Area of Science:

• Nephrology
• Clinical Nutrition
• Biostatistics

Background:

• The Controlled Nutritional Status (CONUT) score is recognized for its association with mortality across diverse patient populations.
• Nutritional status significantly impacts patient outcomes, especially in chronic conditions like end-stage renal disease.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the predictive capability of the CONUT score for mortality in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD).
• To assess the CONUT score's utility in stratifying risk for both early and overall mortality in HD patients.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 243 patients initiating HD between 2012 and 2020.
• Calculation of CONUT scores based on laboratory values within the first month of dialysis initiation.
• Assessment of mortality (early and late) over a mean follow-up of 32.2 months.

Main Results:

• A total of 119 patients (48.8%) died during the follow-up period.
• Higher CONUT scores were observed in non-survivors.
• The CONUT score showed moderate predictive accuracy for overall mortality (AUC 0.665) and higher accuracy for early mortality (AUC 0.729).
• Optimal cut-off points were identified for predicting overall (5.5) and early mortality (6.5).

Conclusions:

• The CONUT score serves as a reliable tool for predicting overall mortality in hemodialysis patients at the initiation of treatment.
• The CONUT score demonstrates particular utility in predicting early mortality, offering valuable insights for timely intervention.