The association between Hba1c and arterial stiffness among non-diabetic patients with chronic kidney disease

Abstract

Background Cardiovascular events are seen more frequently after the age of 60 and they are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Arterial stiffness is a property that can be expressed by pulse wave velocity and this value is assumed to be a predictor of cardiovascular events. Patients with chronic kidney disease and dysregulated blood sugar have increased atherosclerosis and arterial stiffness, but the relationship between physiological levels of Hba1c and arterial stiffness is less clear in chronic kidney disease patients without diabetes mellitus. Objectives Here, we aimed to investigate the degree of arterial stiffness among non-diabetic, non-dialysis dependent chronic kidney disease patients with physiological HbA1c levels. Methods We enrolled 51 patients who were followed up at Ege University Hospital Nephrology Department between February and June 2015. Non-diabetic, non-dialysis dependent chronic kidney disease patients were included in the study. Blood pressure and pulse wave velocity were measured with an applanation tonometry device (Sphygmocor Vx Software Atcor Medical, Australia). Correlations between pulse wave velocity and the aforementioned parameters were investigated (see below). Results We detected a significant correlation between pulse wave velocity and systolic blood pressure (p=0.0001) and Hba1c (p=0.044) separately. There was an inverse correlation with creatinine clearance (p=0.04). We also detected a significant correlation with serum phosphorus level (p=0.0077) and furosemide use (p=0.014). No correlations were found among the other parameters. Conclusions Arterial stiffness is an important predictor of cardiovascular events and measuring it is an inexpensive method for estimating morbidity and mortality. Our study supports the importance of measuring arterial stiffness and of controlling blood glucose levels, even at physiological Hba1c values, especially for chronic kidney disease patients.

Cuffless Blood Pressure Estimation Using Calibrated Cardiovascular Dynamics in the Photoplethysmogram

“…PWV is the speed of the pulse wave moving along the arterial vessels, and it is inversely related to PTT and PAT but is directly related to BP [ 15 ]. PWV is often used as the basis for cuffless methods to estimate blood pressure and is founded on the theory of fluid wave propagation through elastic pipes [ 16 ].…”