Hemodialysis patients are at high risk for sudden cardiac death, and they are at the highest risk during the first year of treatment. Given those grim facts, researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine set out to discover whether heart-protective Omega-3 fatty acids, found in fish oil, walnuts and other foods, could be beneficial for dialysis patients.

Allon N. Friedman, M.D., associate professor of medicine in the Division of Nephrology at IU said, “We found that higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood of patients who were just starting hemodialysis were very strongly associated with a lower risk of sudden cardiac death over the first year of their treatment.”

More studies are needed, but the finding paves the way for strategies to prevent sudden cardiac death in dialysis patients. The research could also lead to new dietary recommendations for this patient population.

Source:

Science Daily, Fish Oil May Protect Dialysis Patients from Sudden Cardiac Death, February 6, 2013

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Researchers from the University of Alberta have found that patients with chronic kidney disease face the same risk for a coronary event as previous heart attack sufferers. The study followed 1.3 million Canadians with risk factors for coronary events, including patients who had already had a heart attack, those with CKD, diabetes or a combination of risk factors. According to lead researcher, Dr. Marco Tonelli, “The rate of death from heart disease among people with chronic kidney disease was similar to or higher than the rate of death among people with diabetes—in whom the value of preventive treatments is well known.” Although the study did not take medications or blood pressure readings from the patients into account, the findings suggest that early drug treatments and interventions could help prevent cardiac events in kidney patients.

Source:

Risk of Coronary Events in People with Chronic Kidney Disease Compared with Those of Diabetes: A Population-Level Cohort Study, The Lancet, June 19, 2012

Chronic Kidney Disease and Heart Attack Risk, Medical News Today, June 20, 2012

Kidney Disease May Be As Harmful to Heart As Heart Attack: Study, Medline Plus, June 19, 2012

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Japanese researchers have discovered that NT-proBNP, a biomarker used to detect heart failure, may also predict risk of progressive CKD as well as cardiac risk in patients with Type 2 diabetes. The study followed diabetic patients with stage 1 or stage 2 CKD for 5 years and found that those with a higher baseline of NT-proBNP were more likely to experience a new cardiac event and a 30% decrease in estimated glomerular filtration. The scientists need to conduct more research to confirm an optimal cutoff for levels of NT-proBNP. Because NT-proBNP is already used to test for cardiac risk, the researchers believe it could be an inexpensive and simple way to evaluate diabetic patients in hopes of preventing cardiovascular disease as well as progressive chronic kidney disease.

ADA: Cardiac Biomarker Good for Kidneys, Too, MedPage Today, June 14, 2012

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DIARY OF A KIDNEY LOVER

This is the diary entry I didn’t want to write because I have to tell you that my Uncle Bob passed away a few weeks ago.  I have been thinking about this a lot, trying to figure out how to start this blog, how to include all the things I want to say.  I even tried writing some of this in a handmade journal in a Starbuck’s, without edits or stalling, just words and scribbles and arrows.  It helped a little, but in the end, it was time to go and the entry was not complete.  And when I left, I thought I saw my uncle sitting at a table outside.  The mind sometimes sees what it wants to see.  On the walk home, I saw three very real and very tiny lizards cross my path, felt the sun on my back and thought how beautiful the planet is.  And I thought about all the days that had led up to that one.  My uncle, a long-time diabetic and more recent kidney disease patient, had been admitted to the hospital following a stroke and heart attack – pretty typical ailments for someone afflicted with kidney disease.  Seven weeks of up and down days followed.  This, too, was probably pretty typical.  Everyone thought he was finally getting better until a series of infections took over his body.

On that walk, I didn’t want to think too much about the physical part of his illness.  I figured there would be time for that later.  I decided simply to remember my uncle.  I dug deep and realized that he and my aunt had taught me two of my most important lessons.  They made a good team, you see; she was everyone’s favorite nursery school teacher and he was a policeman with the city of LA.  Uncle Bob could be fun and he could be stern, obviously a good disciplinarian, which brings me back to my lessons.  First, don’t be a tattletale.  People don’t like tattletales and ultimately, they stop listening to your stories.  Second, don’t throw a metal toy gun at anyone’s head.  Yes, my cousin Matt made me so mad that I threw a little gun at him.  Thankfully, he was a moving target and the gun must have just grazed him, but it made him bleed.  I still remember the faces of my aunt and uncle, near tears with concern for their son.  They were gentle with me though, determined to get through.  And they taught me in the kindest way possible – through the visible love they demonstrated that day – that violence is never the answer.

I think I will end it here.  August 10 was my Uncle Bob’s birthday.  He would have been 64 today.  What an example he has been in my life!

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