Increased cardiovascular risk factors and features of endothelial activation and dysfunction in dialyzed uremic patients

Abstract

Due to the incidence of symptomatic atherosclerosis in uremic patients, hemostasis-derived cardiovascular risk factors, basal plasma concentrations of some endothelial-derived glycoproteins and desmopressin-induced variations of endothelial-derived proteins were studied in 22 uremic patients on prolonged maintenance hemodialysis with no cardiovascular antecedent. Compared to control subjects, patients had increased predialysis hemostasis-related cardiovascular risk factors: high fibrinogen, proconvertin, and type 1 plasminogen activator inhibitor plasma concentrations; low albumin values; generally low antithrombin III values but sometimes high. They had high predialysis plasma concentrations of endothelium-derived glycoproteins: von Willebrand factor, tissue-type plasminogen activator and urokinase-type plasminogen activator, which are secreted by endothelial cells, but also soluble thrombomodulin, a marker of endothelial cell injury. The desmopressin-induced release of tissue-type plasminogen activator and of von Wiliebrand factor were lower than in controls. High fibrinogen, type 1 plasminogen activator inhibitor and low albumin plasma concentrations may be linked to repeated acute phase reactions associated with hemodialysis. Data concerning endothelium-related proteins are concordant with the co-existence of a chronic in vivo endothelial activation and endothelial injury in uremia. This could be linked to the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis.