Obesity linked to hormone in CKD

SALEM, Va., Aug. 10 (UPI) -- The risk of higher levels of parathyroid hormone, or hyperparathyroidism, increases with body weight for those with chronic kidney disease, a U.S. study said.

Both obesity and hyperparathyroidism are complex problems in chronic kidney disease, and establishing an association between the two is important because of potential prognostic and therapeutic implications, said lead author Dr. Csaba P. Kovesdy of Salem VA Medical Center, in Salem, Va.

The study of 496 U.S. veterans with moderate to severe chronic kidney disease, who were not yet on dialysis, showed a significant association between obesity and hyperparathyroidism. As body mass index increased, so did the levels of parathyroid hormone, suggested the study published in the September Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

The relationship between increased parathyroid hormone and body weight was unaffected by age, race, diabetes or other factors.

Obesity was only associated with higher parathyroid hormone levels in patients who also showed signs of malnutrition and inflammation, said Kovesdy.