Association of malnutrition in peritoneal dialysis patients of Saudi Arabia

Malnutrition is highly prevalent in dialysis patients, and a major contributor to morbidity and mortality. We have investigated the inter-relationship between malnutrition and its impact on morbidity and mortality in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. We enrolled 60 PD patients, and measured C-reactive protein (CRP) and various nutritional markers, including pre-albumin. Patients were classified into two groups according to the albumin level since albumin is a good marker of nutrition condition: Group I (n = 32) patients with normal albumin (NAP) where the albumin level was above or equal to 35 g/L and Group II (n = 28) patients with low albumin level (LAP) less than 35 g/L. The level (mean ± SD) of blood urea nitrogen was significantly high (p < 0.05) in NAP group (19.9 ± 5.76 mmol/L) compared with LAP group (15.9 ± 6.32 mmol/L). Data showed that, the mean of creatinine was significantly high (p < 0.01) in NAP group (921 μmol/L) compared with LAP group (584 μmol/L) (Table 2). There was a trend toward association of elevated CRP with all-cause mortality in PD patients. It is useful to incorporate albumin and CRP in the regular assessment of PD patients, whose survival may be improved by better management of malnutrition.