Association between serum potassium levels and adverse outcomes in chronic kidney disease: the Fukushima CKD cohort study

Background Serum potassium disorders, commonly observed in chronic kidney disease (CKD), are reportedly associated with higher mortality, but their impact on renal outcomes is still controversial. Methods The present study used the longitudinal data of the Fukushima CKD cohort study to investigate the relationships between hypokalemia and hyperkalemia and adverse outcomes such as renal outcomes and all-cause mortality in Japanese patients with non-dialysis-dependent CKD. The study involved 1330 CKD patients followed-up for 2.8 years. The primary endpoint of the present study was a kidney event, defined as a combination of doubling of baseline serum creatinine and end-stage kidney disease. Results Hyperkalemia (≥ 5.0 mmol/L) was noted in 10.6% and hypokalemia (