Prognosis of heart valve calcification on cardiovascular events in hemodialysis patients without central venous catheters

Introduction: Heart valvular calcification (HVC) is an important predictor of cardiovascular events (CEs) and all-cause mortality in dialysis patients. Patients in the early stage of dialysis or those with central venous catheters (CVCs) are also at high risk of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. It could be a confounding factor for the prognosis of HVC on CE. Methods: From March 2017 to April 2022, the prognosis of HVC on CE and all-cause mortality was studied retrospectively in 158 hemodialysis (HD) patients who used arteriovenous fistulas (AVFs) or arteriovenous grafts (AVGs) as vascular access and entered HD for more than 12 months. Results: Out of 158 patients, 70 (44.3%) were diagnosed with HVC via echocardiography. A total of 180 CEs occurred during follow-up. Among them, acute heart failure (AHF) accounted for 62.66%, and its prevalence was significantly higher in the HVC group than that in the non-HVC group (p
Source: Cardiorenal Medicine - Category: Urology & Nephrology Source Type: research