Physical Activity May Improve Cardiorenal Outcomes in CKD

THURSDAY, March 11, 2021 (HealthDay News) — For individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD), physical activity of 7.5 to <15 metabolic equivalent (MET) hours per week is associated with a reduction in adverse cardiorenal outcomes, according to a study published online March 10 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.

Chou-Pin Kuo, from Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan, and colleagues examined the dose-response effects of physical activity on mortality and major cardiorenal events in a longitudinal cohort of 4,508 Taiwanese CKD patients between 2004 and 2017. Participants were classified into highly active (≥7.5 MET hours per week), low-active (0.1 to <7.5 MET hours/week), or inactive (0 MET hours/week) groups.

The researchers identified 739 deaths, 1,059 end-stage renal disease (ESRD) events, and 521 major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) during a median follow-up of 686 days. For all study outcomes, the highly active group had the lowest chance, followed by the low-active and inactive groups. Compared with the inactive group, only the highly active group was independently associated with lower risks for all-cause mortality, ESRD, and MACE (hazard ratios, 0.62, 0.83, and 0.63, respectively). There was no further decrease noted in the risks for MACE once physical activity exceeded 15 MET hours/week, suggesting a U-shaped association. In a subgroup analysis and sensitivity analyses, the results were consistent.

“Our results suggest that physical activity should be integrated into the clinical care of patients with kidney disease,” a coauthor said in a statement.

Abstract/Full Text