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IntroductionPatients with end stage kidney disease undergoing maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) are prone to malnutrition and infections.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of polymorphonuclear (PMN) cell dysfunction on clinical outcomes of MHD patients, in association with nutritional status.MethodsThis prospective study investigated 39 MHD patients by evaluating the oxidative activity of their PMN cells using Phorbol 12‐Myristate‐13‐Acetate (PMA) stimulation. Blood samples were taken from each participant at dialysis initiation. Demographics, laboratory data, and clinical outcomes during a 24‐month follow‐up period were obtained from electronic medical records.ResultsPhagocytic activity was described in percentiles of mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) of PMA levels. There were no differences in comorbidities between patients with low or high MFI‐PMA percentiles. Patients in the lowest (25th) MFI‐PMA percentile (N = 10) had poorer nutritional status and more frequent severe infections compared to the other 29 patients (4.3 ± 3.4 events versus 2 ± 2.2 events, p = 0.017). Furthermore, they had more frequent hospitalizations (>3) due to infections (70% versus 41%, p = 0.073) and their mortality rate was higher (80% versus 31%, p = 0.007). The odds ratio for all‐cause mortality was 8.85. In multivariate analysis, the MFI‐PMA percentile and ischemic heart disease were the strongest predictors of all‐cause mortality (p = 0.02 and p = 0.005, respectively).ConclusionsLow MFI‐PMA levels were associated with poor nutritional status and adverse clinical outcomes and might serve as a prognostic biomarker, predicting severe infections and mortality among malnourished MHD patients.