Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of patients according to the median Simpson index.
| Parameter | Lower diversity (n = 54) | Higher diversity (n = 55) | P Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 69 ± 11 | 68 ± 10 | 0.486 |
| Male sex, n (%) | 32 (59.3%) | 25 (45.5%) | 0.149 |
| DM, n (%) | 29 (53.7%) | 25 (45.5%) | 0.389 |
| CVD, n (%) | 32 (59.3%) | 18 (32.7%) | 0.005 |
| Charlson comorbidity index | |||
| 1–2 | 1 (1.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | |
| 3–4 | 5 (9.3%) | 15 (27.3%)a | 0.035 |
| ≥5 | 48 (88.9%) | 40 (72.7%)a | |
| Dialysis vintage (years) | 7.5 (4.8–12.0) | 8.0 (4.0–11.0) | 0.752 |
| Dialysis access type | |||
| Arteriovenous fistula | 47 (87.0%) | 49 (89.1%) | |
| Arteriovenous graft | 6 (11.1%) | 6 (10.9%) | 0.597 |
| Central venous catheter | 1 (1.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 23.2 ± 3.5 | 24.5 ± 3.4 | 0.053 |
| FTI (kg/m2) | 8.9 ± 4.1 | 10.2 ± 3.9 | 0.098 |
| LTI (kg/m2) | 13.3 ± 3.6 | 13.7 ± 2.7 | 0.596 |
| BF (%) | 27.8 ± 10.9 | 30.1 ± 9.3 | 0.230 |
| Overhydration (%) | 4.1 (−3.2–9.7) | 4.5 (−2.5–10.9) | 0.445 |
| SGA score | 6.0 (5.0–7.0) | 6.0 (6.0–7.0) | 0.007 |
| PASE score | 32 (9–59) | 58 (35–86) | 0.002 |
| Medication | |||
| PPI, n (%) | 5 (9.4%) | 5 (9.1%) | 0.951 |
| Calcium carbonate, n (%) | 40 (75.5%) | 49 (89.1%) | 0.063 |
| CCB, n (%) | 26 (49.1%) | 25 (45.5%) | 0.708 |
| β-blocker, n (%) | 24 (45.3%) | 27 (49.1%) | 0.692 |
| RAASi, n (%) | 20 (37.7%) | 16 (29.1%) | 0.341 |
| Dietary intake (servings/day) | |||
| Vegetables | 2.4 (1.5–3.3) | 2.2 (1.6–3.1) | 0.867 |
| Fruits | 0.9 (0.3–1.1) | 0.6 (0.3–1.4) | 0.904 |
| Meat | 0.9 (0.4–1.3) | 0.7 (0.4–1.3) | 0.699 |
| Laboratory parameters | |||
| Kt/V | 1.7 ± 0.4 | 1.7 ± 0.3 | 0.740 |
| nPNA (g/kg/day) | 1.2 ± 0.2 | 1.1 ± 0.3 | 0.755 |
| Albumin (g/dl) | 3.9 ± 0.3 | 4.0 ± 0.4 | 0.536 |
| Fasting glucose (mg/dl) | 115 (96–150) | 109 (100–140) | 0.587 |
| Total cholesterol (mg/dl) | 153 (136–191) | 157 (138–179) | 0.901 |
| LDL (mg/dl) | 86 (66–106) | 90 (73–106) | 0.248 |
| Triglycerides (mg/dl) | 102 (70–177) | 101 (70–151) | 0.513 |
| Calcium (mmol/l) | 9.3 ± 0.8 | 9.3 ± 0.9 | 0.753 |
| Phosphorus (mg/dl) | 5.1 ± 1.4 | 5.3 ± 1.2 | 0.296 |
| iPTH (pg/ml) | 257 (107–425) | 398 (187–605) | 0.034 |
| CRP (mg/dl) | 0.32 (0.17–0.85) | 0.23 (0.14–0.61) | 0.154 |
| IL-6 (pg/ml) | 12.38 (6.35–18.91) | 6.46 (4.07–11.83) | 0.002 |
| TNF-α (pg/ml) | 5.02 (1.86–10.76) | 2.57 (0.68–5.89) | 0.009 |
BF body fat, BMI body mass index, CCB calcium channel blocker, CRP C-reactive protein, CVD cardiovascular disease, DM diabetes mellitus, FTI fat tissue index, IL-6 interleukin-6, iPTH intact parathyroid hormone, LDL low-density lipoprotein, LTI lean tissue index, nPNA normalized protein nitrogen appearance, PASE the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly, PPI proton pump inhibitor, RAASi renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitor, SGA subjective global assessment; TNF-α tumor necrosis factor-α.
aP < 0.05 between the lower-diversity and the higher-diversity group by the Bonferroni post hoc test.