Table 2.
Baseline characteristics of the included patients
| Characteristics | Patients (n = 84) |
|---|---|
| Male | 63 (75) |
| Age (years) | 66.7 ± 14.8 |
| Haemodialysis vintage (months), mean ± SD | 60.6 ± 56.7 |
| Vascular access | |
| Native AVF | 68 (81) |
| Prosthetic AVF | 8 (9.5) |
| Catheter | 8 (9.5) |
| Haemodialysis parameters, mean ± SD | |
| Blood flow (mL/min) | 416 ± 33 |
| Dialysate flow (mL/min) | 378 ± 41 |
| Time per session (min), mean ± SD | 332 ± 80 |
| 240 | 3 (4) |
| 270 | 14 (17) |
| 300 | 49 (58) |
| 480 | 18 (21) |
| ESKD aetiology | |
| Chronic glomerulonephritis | 13 (15.5) |
| Tubulointerstitial nephritis | 4 (4.8) |
| Vascular | 22 (26.2) |
| Polycystic kidney disease | 9 (10.7) |
| Diabetic nephropathy | 11 (13.1) |
| Systemic | 5 (6) |
| Urological | 1 (1.2) |
| Kidney tumour | 4 (4.8) |
| Undiagnosed | 15 (17.9) |
| Comorbidities | |
| Smoking habit | 14 (17) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 37 (44) |
| Dyslipidaemia | 49 (58) |
| Hypertension | 46 (54.8) |
| Ischaemic heart disease | 28 (33) |
| Cerebrovascular accident | 8 (9.5) |
| Peripheral artery disease | 21 (25) |
| COPD | 14 (17) |
| Chronic HBV infectiona | 6 (5) |
| Chronic HCV infectionb | 5 (4) |
| Chronic HIV infectiona | 7 (6) |
| Chronic treatment | |
| Hypoglycaemic agents | 32 (38) |
| Oral antidiabetic agents | 10 (12) |
| Insulin | 22 (26) |
| Hypolipidaemic agents | 49 (58) |
| Antiplatelet agents | 43 (51) |
| Antihypertensive drugs | 46 (54.8) |
| Phosphorus–calcium complementary treatment | |
| Alfacalcidiol | 37 (44) |
| Etelcalcetide | 26 (31) |
| Phosphate binders | |
| With calcium | 36 (42.9) |
| Without calcium | 15 (17.9) |
Values are presented as n (%) unless stated otherwise.
a
All patients were under treatment with a controlled viral load.
b
All patients were treated and cured with direct-acting antiviral agents before the study.
AVF, arteriovenous fistula; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; HBV, hepatitis B virus; HCV, hepatitis C virus; HIV, human immunodeficiency virus.