Study of cardiovascular risk in patients with chronic kidney disease with special reference to common carotid artery intimal medial thickness

Background: It is generally known that chronic kidney disease (CKD) increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). There is controversy on the correlations between carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and subclinical atherosclerosis in CKD patients. This study assessed the cardiovascular risk in patients with CKD and estimated the common CIMT in patients with CKD. Materials and Methods: This prospective observational study was carried out for 1 year and included 100 CKD patients. A detailed history of the patients was recorded in the predesigned proforma. Patients underwent thorough examination, blood investigation, and CIMT measurement using ultrasonography. The statistical software, namely SPSS 18.0 and R environment ver.3.2.2, were used to analyze the data. Results: The mean age group of the patients in the study was 52.58 ± 6.31 years. CKD was more common in male patients in the present study. Most patients were in CKD stage 3 (32%) and stage 4 (67%). Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) was present in 42% of CKD subjects in this study, indicating a high prevalence of LVH in CKD. The mean CIMT of the study group was 1.14 ± 0.29, which showed an increase in CIMT in all CKD patients. Conclusion: CKD patients are at higher risk for developing CVD in various forms. Thus, early diagnosis using CIMT measurement, a noninvasive, safe, easily performed, and relatively cost-effective technique, will probably help in early intervention to reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in CKD patients.