Comparison of Gait Speed and Peripheral Nerve Function Between Chronic Kidney Disease Patients With and Without Diabetes

To compare overall physical function, including gait speed and peripheral nerve function, between diabetic chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients and nondiabetic CKD patients and to investigate the association between gait speed and peripheral nerve function in CKD patients. Sixty adult CKD patients (35 with and 25 without diabetes), who received maintenance hemodialysis (HD), were included in this study. Demographic data, past medical history, current medical condition and functional data-usual gait speed, vibration perception threshold for the index finger (VPT-F) and the great toe (VPT-T), activity of daily living (ADL) difficulty, and peripheral neuropathy (PN) along with the degree of its severity-were collected and compared between the two groups. Correlations between the severity of PN and the impairment of other functions were identified. Diabetic CKD patients showed significantly slower gait speed (p=0.029), impaired sensory function (VPT-F, p=0.011; VPT-T, p=0.023), and more frequent and severe PN (number of PN, p