Muscle and fat metabolism in obesity after kidney transplantation: no effect of peritoneal dialysis or hemodialysis.

Our prospective study analyzed selected adipocytokines: adiponectin (ADPN), leptin, visfatin, and asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) in the plasma of renal transplant recipients previously treated by peritoneal dialysis and hemodialysis. A total of 70 patients were on follow-up for 12 months after transplantation. Of these, 30 patients (group I) developed obesity, and 40 patients were nonobese (group II). All were receiving standard immunosuppressive therapy (cyclosporine A or tacrolimus and mycophenolate mofetil, with prednisone added in the early posttransplant period) and did not differ statistically in HLA typing, age, sex, duration of previous dialysis, history of cardiovascular disease, and rate of rejection episodes. At the end of the study period, there were significant differences between groups I and II (t test, analysis of variance) in plasma: ADPN, 22.30 ± 10.2 versus 14.3 ± 7.2 μg/mL; visfatin, 1.7 ± 0.1 versus 1.2 ± 0.1 ng/mL; ADMA, 3.60 ± 0.47 versus 2.10 ± 0.36 μmol/L; P < .01; leptin, 55.6 ± 10.2 versus 25.6 ± 8.3 ng/L; P < .01 (P < .02). In conclusion, an increase of body fat after renal transplantation was associated with an increase of ADMA and leptin, TNF-α, MCP-1, and visfatin and decrease of adiponectin. Our study documented there was now long-term beneficial metabolic effect of peritoneal dialysis in developing posttransplant obesity.