Background: Advanced glycation end product (AGE) levels are elevated in patients with decreased renal function and may contribute to the excessive cardiovascular disease in this population. However, their relation to nutrition, anemia, and micro inflammation is not well characterized.
The aim of this study is to determine their relationship in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Methods: The studied group consisted of 203 subjects: 159 patients with CKD 1--5 and 44 healthy control subjects.
AGE levels were assessed by spectrofluorimetry, and routine biochemical parameters were measured using standard methods. Results: AGE levels were significantly increased in CKD patients compared with controls (3.9 +/-+/- 1.7 xx 105 AU in CKD 1--5 patients vs. 3.2 +/-+/- 0.48 xx 105 AU in controls, p < 0.0001).
AGE levels increased from CKD 3. AGE levels were positively associated with age, albumin, prealbumin, and orosomucoid, and were negatively associated with hemoglobin and estimated glomerular filtration rate.
In multiple regression analysis, after adjustment to age and glomerular filtration rate, AGE levels remained independently correlated with albumin and prealbumin and negatively correlated with hemoglobin. Conclusions: This study is the demonstration that nutrition markers, albumin and prealbumin, are the positive determinants and hemoglobin is the negative determinant of serum AGE levels in patients with CKD.