Vascular diseases and their risk factors in IgA nephropathy

Background. Many studies have focused on risk factors for renal insufficiency in IgA nephropathy (IgAN). We recently found metabolic factors, especially uric acid, to predict progression and marked histopathological lesions in IgAN. Since vascular diseases (VDs), in addition to renal insufficiency, affect the overall survival of IgAN patients, we studied the occurrence of and risk factors underlying VDs in IgAN. Methods. In this study, VDs here comprised the presence of coronary heart disease (CHD) and/or cerebrovascular disease (CeVD). We correlated clinical, metabolic and histopathological findings with the occurrence of VDs in 221 adult patients with IgAN. Seven histopathological parameters were semiquantitatively graded. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate independent predictors of VDs in these patients. The occurrence of VDs in IgAN patients ≥30 years of age was studied and compared with that in the general population drawn from the same area. Results. VDs were notably common in IgAN patients. Patients with IgAN had significantly more frequent VDs, CHD and CeVD than the general population (P