Frailty Is Associated with Malnutrition–Inflammation Syndrome in Older CKD Patients

Abstract

Patients affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD) are generally considered to be frailer than those with preserved renal function. We cross-sectionally evaluated the associations between frailty, malnutrition–inflammation syndrome and circulating inflammatory cytokines in 115 older individuals with advanced CKD. As for frailty definition, we adopted Fried’s frailty phenotype (FP), while malnutrition–inflammation syndrome was assessed using the Malnutrition–Inflammation Score (MIS) and circulating inflammatory cytokines (IL-6; TNFα; MCP-1). A total of 48 patients were frail, and mean eGFR was comparable in both frail and non-frail patients (24 ± 10 vs. 25 ± 11 mL/min/1.73 m2; p = 0.63). Frail patients had higher MIS (6 [4–11] vs. 4 [3–5]; p p = 0.049 and p p = 0.005); in conclusion, in older patients with advanced CKD, frailty is strictly associated with malnutrition–inflammation syndrome but not with circulating inflammatory cytokines.

Keywords

• frailty
• malnutrition
• systemic inflammation
• chronic kidney disease (CKD)