Frailty and nutritional status in the pre-transplant period. Is there a relationship?

Abstract

Introduction: Malnutrition in chronic kidney disease (CKD) is associated with increased risk of mortality and complications. However, the nutritional status of patients with CKD on the renal transplant waiting list and their relationship to the frailty status has been poorly evaluated. Aim: To analyze the nutritional and functional status of a cohort of patients on the waiting list for renal transplantation and its relation to frailty. Patients and method: Retrospective study of patients included in waiting list of renal trasplantation from June 2016 to June 2017. Patients were evaluated through different assessment scales, taking anthropometric, analytical and bioimpedancometry (BCM) parameters. Results: Of the 177 patients included, 55 (31.1%) were defined as frailty. This frailty group was older (64.2 vs 61.2 years, p = 0.08), higher number of females (56.4% vs 32.8%, p <0.01), higher BMI (29.3 ± 5.8 vs 27.3 ± 5.6 kg/m2, p = 0.03) and more frequently diabetic (DMII) (43.6% vs 30.3%, p = 0.08). The BCM evaluation showed that the frailty patients had a lower index of lean tissue (12.3 ± 2.4 vs 14.1 ± 4 kg/m2, p <0.01) and a higher fat index (16.2 ± 6.1 vs 11.8 ± 5.6 kg/m2; <0.01) than non-frailty ones. Conclusions: In our waiting list for renal transplantation, the frailty patients are older, female, more obese, DMII and with lower muscle mass. Strategies to liberalize diets, increase protein intake and promote physical exercise may be relevant to improve the short- and long-term results of the renal transplantation.