Abstract
Background: Carnitine deficiency is common in patients on dialysis. Serum free carnitine concentration is significantly lower in patients on hemodialysis (HD) than in healthy individuals. However, there are few reports on serum free carnitine concentration in patients on peritoneal dialysis (PD). Methods: We examined serum concentrations of total, free, and acylcarnitine and the acylcarnitine/free carnitine ratio in 34 PD and 34 age-, sex-, and dialysis duration-matched HD patients. We investigated the prevalence of carnitine deficiency and clinical factors associated with carnitine deficiency in the PD group. Results: Prevalence of carnitine deficiency was 8.8% in the PD group and 17.7% in the HD group (p = 0.283). High risk of carnitine deficiency was found in 73.5% of the PD group and 76.4% of the HD group (p = 0.604). Carnitine insufficiency was found in 82.3% of the PD group and 88.2% of HD group (p = 0.733). Multivariate analysis revealed that duration of dialysis and age were independent predictors of serum free carnitine level in the PD group. Conclusions: The prevalence of carnitine deficiency, high risk of carnitine deficiency, and carnitine insufficiency in PD patients was 8.8%, 73.5%, and 82.3%, respectively. These rates were comparable to those in patients on HD.
Highlights
Carnitine is a naturally-occurring substance necessary for transporting long-chain fatty acids into the mitochondria and plays an important role in energy supply in the body
There was no significant difference in age, sex, dialysis duration, causes of end-stage kidney disease, and medications between the two groups
Anuria was present in eight patients in the peritoneal dialysis (PD) group and in 15 patients in the HD group
Summary
Carnitine is a naturally-occurring substance necessary for transporting long-chain fatty acids into the mitochondria and plays an important role in energy supply in the body. There are few reports on serum free carnitine concentration in patients on peritoneal dialysis (PD). Methods: We examined serum concentrations of total, free, and acylcarnitine and the acylcarnitine/free carnitine ratio in 34 PD and 34 age-, sex-, and dialysis duration-matched HD patients. High risk of carnitine deficiency was found in 73.5% of the PD group and 76.4% of the HD group (p = 0.604). Multivariate analysis revealed that duration of dialysis and age were independent predictors of serum free carnitine level in the PD group. Conclusions: The prevalence of carnitine deficiency, high risk of carnitine deficiency, and carnitine insufficiency in PD patients was 8.8%, 73.5%, and 82.3%, respectively. These rates were comparable to those in patients on HD
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