Journal of Medical Biochemistry (Jan 2009)
Lipoprotein(a) in chronic renal failure
Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of mortality in patients with chronic renal failure. Among the parameters contributing to cardiovascular disease development is the elevated serum concentration of lipoprotein(a) diagnosed in these patients, especially in the terminal stage of CRF. However, an elevated concentration of lipoprotein(a) could influence the renal failure progression. The objective of this study is to examine the lipoprotein(a) serum levels in chronic renal failure, and to establish the relation between the stage of renal function preservation and the level of this lipoprotein. In this study 127 subjects were included, divided into three groups. The first group contained 42 subjects (15 females and 27 males) in different CRF stages, the second group contained 32 subjects (7 females and 25 males) on a chronic hemodialysis program, and the control group contained 53 subjects (22 females and 31 males) with regular renal function. The results obtained point to significantly higher frequency of hyper-Lp(a) lipoproteinaemia in dialysed patients compared to the control group, as well as significantly higher Lp(a) values in both groups of patients compared to the control group. It can be concluded that for the risk assessment of premature atherosclerotic changes, but also renal failure progression in patients with CRF, determination of the Lp(a) serum concentration is recommendable.
