Abstract
Background The high prevalence of classic cardiovascular risk factors in patients undergoing dialysis therapy or transplantation is associated with a 3.5- to 50-fold higher risk than in the general population. The primary cause of death in transplant recipients is cardiovascular disease. Objective To report echocardiographic findings using a screening protocol to detect heart disease in candidates for kidney transplantation. Methods Between November 2005 and December 2009, we examined 356 patients using 2-dimensional color Doppler echocardiography. Results A high prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy, left ventricular diastolic dysfunction, valvulopathy, and valve calcification was observed. There was a positive correlation between valve calcification and female sex, age ( P < .001), duration of renal replacement therapy ( P = .01), peripheral arterial disease ( P = .02), cerebrovascular disease ( P = .005), and high concentration of lipoprotein(a) ( P = .02). Conclusion An echocardiographic study should be part of the initial evaluation in candidates for renal transplantation.
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