Table 1.
Baseline clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with fT3 level above and under the cut-off value (3.05 pg/mL)
| Total | fT3 <3.05 pg/mL | fT3 >3.05 pg/mL | P-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (n = 220) | (n = 93) | (n = 127) | ||
| Female gender, n (%) | 83 (37.7) | 40 (43.0) | 43 (33.9) | 0.038 |
| Age (years) | 58.1 ± 11.1 | 59.2 ± 9.9 | 57.3 ± 11.8 | 0.407 |
| Follow-up (months) | 41.4 ± 29.9 | 33.7 ± 26.4 | 47.0 ± 31.2 | 0.001 |
| Type of HD (HDF), n (%) | 32 (14.5) | 13 (14.0) | 19 (15.0) | 0.838 |
| Type of dialysis access (CVC), n (%) | 53 (24.1) | 25 (26.8) | 28 (22.0) | 0.407 |
| Diabetes mellitus (yes), n (%) | 53 (24.1) | 30 (32.6) | 23 (18.1) | 0.015 |
| Previous CAD (PTCA or CABG), n (%) | 13 (5.9) | 7 (7.5) | 6 (4.7) | 0.384 |
| Previous peripheral vasculopathy, n (%) | 51 (23.2) | 22 (23.7) | 29 (22.8) | 0.887 |
| Severe peripheral arterial stenosis, n (%) | 7 (3.2) | 4 (4.3) | 3 (2.4) | 0.418 |
| Treatment of peripheral arterial stenosis (PTCA), n (%) | 5 (2.3) | 2 (2.2) | 3 (2.2) | 0.971 |
| Kt/Vurea | 1.48 ± 0.68 | 1.40 ± 0.42 | 1.62 ± 0.36 | 0.412 |
| hsCRP (mg/dL) | 15.1 ± 15.0 | 19.7 ± 12.4 | 14.8 ± 11.6 | < 0.001 |
| Albumin (g/dL) | 4.0 ± 0.8 | 3.9 ± 0.4 | 4.5 ± 2.4 | 0.006 |
| Haemoglobin (g/dL) | 10.9 ± 0.7 | 10.6 ± 0.7 | 11.2 ± 0.7 | <0.001 |
| Calcium (mg/dL) | 8.9 ± 0.5 | 8.9 ± 0.5 | 9.0 ± 0.6 | 0.293 |
| Phosphate (mg/dL) | 5.0 ± 0.9 | 5.0 ± 1.0 | 5.1 ± 0.9 | 0.810 |
| PTH (pg/mL) | 199.4 ± 145.6 | 207.2 ± 102.8 | 193.1 ± 98.2 | 0.371 |
| Ferritin (ng/mL) | 319.2 ± 276.4 | 332.5 ± 209.0 | 290.5 ± 224.2 | 0.098 |
| TSH (µIU/mL) | 2.00 (1.40–2.50) | 2.00 (1.45–2.73) | 1.91 (1.37–2.40) | 0.139 |
| fT3 (pg/mL) | 3.18 ± 0.46 | 2.77 ± 0.23 | 3.48 ± 0.33 | < 0.001 |
| fT4 (ng/mL) | 1.10 ± 0.25 | 1.06 ± 0.26 | 1.12 ± 0.24 | 0.125 |
| Patients with NTIS (fT3 <2.50 pg/mL), n (%) | 12 (5.4) | 12 (12.9) | 0 (0) | <0.001 |
Values are expressed as mean ± SD for normally distributed variables, median and interquartile range for not normally distributed variables or number of cases and (percentage) for frequencies. A comparison between the main clinical and laboratory parameters of patients with fT3 <3.05 pg/mL and patients with fT3 >3.05 pg/mL is shown and a P-value is reported.
AVF, arteriovenous fistula; CVC, central venous catheter; HDF, haemodialfiltration; NTIS, non-thyroidal illness syndrome; PTH, parathyroid hormone.