Hyperleptinaemia positively correlated with metabolic syndrome in hemodialysis patients

Objective

To evaluate the relationship between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and the fasting serum leptin concentration in hemodialysis (HD) patients.

Patients and methods

Fasting blood samples were obtained from 101 HD patients. MetS and its components were defined using the diagnostic criteria of the International Diabetes Federation.

Results

Forty-eight patients (47.5%) had MetS. Serum leptin concentrations were positively correlated with MetS (p < 0.001). Serum leptin levels correlated with increasing numbers of MetS criteria in HD patients (p = 0.001). Univariate linear regression analysis showed that the pre-HD body weight (p < 0.001), waist circumference (p < 0.001), body mass index (p = 0.001), triglycerides (p = 0.003), insulin level (p = 0.043), and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (p = 0.003) positively correlated with serum leptin levels in HD patients and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (p = 0.016) negatively correlated with serum leptin levels in HD patients. Multivariate forward stepwise linear regression analysis of the significant variables revealed that pre-HD body weight (R² = 0.175; p < 0.001) was the independent predictor of the fasting serum leptin concentration.

Conclusion

Fasting serum leptin levels positively correlated with MetS and the pre-HD body weight could influence serum leptin in HD patients.