Dialysis – Transplantation
Kidney International (2004) 66, 806–810; doi:10.1111/j.1523-1755.2004.00807.x
Pulmonary calcification in hemodialysis patients: Correlation with pulmonary artery pressure values
MORDECHAI YIGLA, ZOHAR KEIDAR, ISRA SAFADI, NAVEH TOV, SHIMON A REISNER and FARID NAKHOUL
Division of Pulmonary Medicine; Department of Nuclear Medicine; Department of Cardiology; and Department of Nephrology, Rambam Medical Center and Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
Correspondence: Dr M. Yigla, Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Rambam Medical Center, POB 9602, Haifa 31096, Israel. E-mail:m_yigla@rambam.health.gov.il
Received 1 April 2003; Revised 6 December 2003; Accepted 20 February 2004.
Abstract
Pulmonary calcification in hemodialysis patients: Correlation with pulmonary artery pressure values.
Background
End-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients receiving chronic hemodialysis (HD) via an arteriovenous (A-V) access often develop unexplained pulmonary hypertension (PHT). This study evaluated the role of pulmonary calcification (PC) in this phenomenon.
Methods
The clinical manifestations, systolic pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) values measured by Doppler echocardiography and the presence and the extent of PC expressed by lung uptake of 99mTc-MDP bone scintigraphy, were studied in 49 patients with ESRD receiving chronic HD therapy via A-V access. The correlation between PC and PHT was investigated.
Results
There were 36 men and 13 women with a mean age of 61.7 
13.2 years receiving HD therapy for 38.2 43.7 months. Twenty (40.8%) patients had PC expressed by increased lung uptake of 99mTc- MDP and 28 (57.1%) patients had PHT with a mean systolic PAP of 46 11 mm Hg. No correlation was found between PC and PHT.
Conclusion
The data suggest that PC expressed by lung uptake of 99mTc-MDP has no role in the pathogenesis of PHT among ESRD patients undergoing HD therapy via A-V access.
Keywords:
end-stage renal disease, hemodialysis, pulmonary calcification, pulmonary hypertension
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