Differences in fluid and solute transport between diabetic and nondiabetic patients at the onset of CAPD

Loss of transcapillary ultrafiltration (TCUF) can occur during continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and may be caused by exposure to the high glucose concentrations in the dialysate, leading to glycation of water channels in the endothelial cells of the peritoneal microvessels. If this hypothesis is correct, diabetic patients should have lower TCUF rates at the onset of CAPD than nondiabetic controls. Such a difference should disappear during longer-duration CAPD because of the continuous glucose exposure in both groups, induced by the high glucose concentrations in the dialysate. Therefore, the standard peritoneal permeability analysis of 11 diabetic (mean age 48 years, range 33-70 years) and 11 nondiabetic patients (mean age 49 years, range 36-69 years) matched for sex, age, and duration of CAPD were studied shortly after the onset of CAPD treatment (mean duration 162 vs 131 days) and one year later. No differences were found in solute transport or protein clearances between the two groups at the onset of CAPD. The TCUF rate was lower in the diabetic patients: 0.9 mL/min (0.09-2.25) versus 1.51 mL/min (0.97-2.44), p = 0.01. The other parameters of fluid transport were not different. The mean osmotic pressure gradient, exerted by albumin and glucose, was 1.72 mmHg in the diabetic patients and 5.44 mmHg in the controls (p = 0.0004). No differences were found in peritoneal permeability, including TCUF, after one year between the two groups. In conclusion, the TCUF rate was lower in diabetic patients compared to nondiabetics only shortly after the onset of CAPD. These results suggest that long-term exposure to high glucose concentrations in diabetics prior to CAPD may cause changes in capillary wall aquaporins, similar to long-term exposure to high glucose concentrations in the dialysate in CAPD.