Table 1.
Characteristics of the studied cohort
| Variable | High-dose prednisone n = 39 |
First-line CNI n = 11 |
Rescue CNI n = 16 |
P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, yr | 37 (24–46) | 23 (18–31) | 29 (24–41) | 0.041 |
| Male, n (%) | 21 (53.8) | 3 (36.4) | 8 (50.0) | 0.592 |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 25.6 (23.0–28.7) | 28.3 (24.7–33.5) | 26.9 (24.4–31.4) | 0.257 |
| Mean arterial pressure, mm Hg | 97 (87–107) | 92 (83–103) | 98 (91–103) | 0.669 |
| Hemoglobin, g/dl | 14.9 (13.0–16.9) | 13.7 (12.4–16.9) | 15.4 (14.4–16.5) | 0.508 |
| Platelets, per mm3 | 287 (214–376) | 304 (216–370) | 310 (268–381) | 0.790 |
| Serum creatinine, mg/dl | 1.3 (0.7–1.8) | 1.3 (0.6–1.7) | 1.0 (0.6–1.4) | 0.639 |
| Estimated GFR, ml/min per 1.73 m2 | 60 (41–115) | 58 (48–122) | 79 (66–112) | 0.495 |
| Proteinuria, g/24 h | 4.9 (3.5–8.0) | 7.4 (3.6–11.9) | 6.7 (3.8–11.0) | 0.449 |
| Protein to creatinine ratio, g/g | 3.7 (3.2–7.3) | 4.9 (3.7–7.6) | 5.8 (3.6–8.7) | 0.359 |
| Protein to creatinine ratio at CNI start, g/ga | — | 4.9 (3.7–7.6) | 5.7 (4.1–9.3) | 0.544 |
| Serum albumin, g/dl | 2.6 (1.6–2.9) | 2.9 (2.3–3.3) | 2.4 (1.0–2.8) | 0.072 |
| Triglycerides, mg/dl | 261 (211–329) | 314 (201–341) | 270 (219–316) | 0.927 |
| Cholesterol, mg/dl | 262 (198–338) | 282 (212–341) | 325 (253–483) | 0.188 |
| Acute kidney injury, n (%) | 3 (7.7) | 1 (9.1) | 1 (6.3) | 0.962 |
CNI, calcineurin inhibitor; GFR, glomerular filtration rate estimated from the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) formula.
a
Protein-to-creatinine ratio at CNI start in the rescue CNI group represents the proteinuria after steroid treatment when the definition for resistance disease was met.