Prognostic significance of concentric left ventricular hypertrophy at peritoneal dialysis initiation

BACKGROUND: Concentric left ventricular hypertrophy (cLVH) is a common left ventricular geometric pattern in patients undergoing maintenance dialysis, including peritoneal dialysis (PD). The relationship between cLVH at PD initiation and the prognosis of patients remains unclear, however. This study aimed to investigate the impact of cLVH at PD initiation on patient survival and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). METHODS: The retrospective cohort study included 131 patients who underwent echocardiography during the PD initiation period. Based on echocardiographic measurements, cLVH was defined as a condition with increased LV mass index and increased relative wall thickness. The relationship between cLVH and the prognosis was assessed. RESULTS: Concentric LVH was identified in 29 patients (22%) at PD initiation, and patient survival, MACE-free survival and PD continuation were significantly reduced in the cLVH group compared with the non-cLVH group. In the Cox regression analysis, cLVH was demonstrated as an independent risk factor of mortality (HR [95%CI]: 3.32 [1.13–9.70]) for all patients. For patients over 65 years old, cLVH was significantly associated with mortality and MACE (HR [95%CI]: 3.51 [1.06–11.58] and 2.97 [1.26–7.01], respectively). Serum albumin at PD initiation was independently correlated with cLVH. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, cLVH at PD initiation was independently associated with survival in all patients and with both survival and MACE in elderly patients. Evaluation of LV geometry at PD initiation might therefore help identify high-risk patients. Further studies involving larger numbers of patients are needed to confirm the findings from this study and clarify whether treatment interventions for factors such as nutrition status could ameliorate cLVH and improve patient outcomes. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12882-021-02321-1.