4124 SEX AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE IN STAGE G2-5 CKD PATIENTS

Abstract Background and Aims Male sex is considered a major risk factor for cardiovascular (CV) disease in the general population, but the role of this factor in the high risk for CV disease in the pre-dialysis CKD population is still debated. Methods We tested the relationship between sex and fatal and non-fatal major CV events (myocardial infarction, heart failure, arrhythmia, angina, stroke, transient ischemic attack, peripheral vascular disease, major arterial or venous thrombotic episodes and sudden death) in a cohort including 759 stage 2-5 CKD consecutively recruited from 22 Nephrology units in southern Italy between October 2005 and September 2008. After the initial assessment, patients were followed up for a median time of 36 months (range 0.3–48 months). Results Four hundred fifty-five patients were males (60%). The proportion of smokers was about 4 times higher in males (71.4%) than in females (17.4%). Males and females differed in the prevalence of diabetes (38.5% versus 29.6%) and the frequency of background CV comorbidities (35.6% versus 19.7%, P