Is echocardiography mandatory for patients with chronic kidney disease?

This study aims at evaluating the prevalence of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in a group of 319 hypertensive patients with stage 3b–4–5 chronic kidney disease (according to Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes classification), compared with 216 patients with essential hypertension and normal renal function. All patients underwent echocardiographic examination. Patients on stage 1–2–3a chronic kidney disease, dialysis treatment, or with previous manifestations of heart failure or other cardiovascular diseases were excluded. Patients with renal disease had significantly worse diastolic function (both considering trans-mitral flow and tissue Doppler imaging parameters). Diastolic …

Differences in cardiac structure and function between black and white patients: Another step in the evaluation of cardiovascular risk in chronic kidney disease

Inverse association between type 2 diabetes and aortic root dimension in hypertensive patients

Background Some data support the concept that aortic root diameter (ARD) in hypertension may be regarded as a marker of subclinical organ damage. The impact of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) on cardiac structure and function is known, although the relationship between DM and ARD is not clear. The aim of our study was to evaluate the influence of DM on ARD in hypertensive patients. Methods We enrolled 1693 hypertensive patients (aged 63.7 ± 9.6 years). The population was divided into two groups: the first one with DM (n = 747) and the second one without DM (n = 946). ARD was measured by echocardiography at level of Valsalva's sinuses using echocardiography M-mode tracings. It was considered a…

Diabetes and aortic root dimension: A controversial subject.

Left ventricular hypertrophy in chronic kidney disease: A diagnostic criteria comparison.

Background and aims: CKD patients have a high prevalence of LVH and this leads to an increase of cardiovascular risk. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and left ventricular geometry in a group of 293 hypertensive patients with stage 2–5 chronic kidney disease (CKD), compared with 289 essential hypertensive patients with normal renal function. Methods and results: All patients underwent echocardiographic examination. Patients on stage 1 CKD, dialysis treatment, or with cardiovascular diseases were excluded. LVH was observed in 62.8% of patients with CKD and in 51.9% of essential hypertensive patients (P < 0.0001). We found increasingl…

Relationship between aortic root size and glomerular filtration rate in hypertensive patients

OBJECTIVE: Recent studies suggest that enlarged aortic root diameter (ARD) may predict cardiovascular events in absence of aneurysmatic alterations. Little is known about the influence of renal function on ARD. Our study was aimed to assess the relationships between glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and ARD in hypertensive subjects. METHODS: We enrolled 611 hypertensive individuals (mean age: 52 ± 15 years; men 63%). ARD was measured by echocardiography at the level of Valsalva's sinuses using M-mode tracings. It was considered as absolute measure, normalized to body surface area (ARD/BSA) and indexed to height (ARD/H). GFR was estimated by the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaborati…