Serum Adiponectin Is a Biomarker Associated With Peripheral Artery Disease in Kidney Transplant Patients

BACKGROUND: Adiponectin is a fat-derived hormone secreted exclusively by adipocytes that have metabolic and atherosclerotic effects. Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is associated with an increased risk of adverse outcomes in patients with kidney transplantation (KT). This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between serum adiponectin levels and PAD in KT patients. METHODS: Fasting blood samples from 70 KT recipients were collected and analyzed. A commercially available enzyme immunoassay was used to measure serum adiponectin levels. Ankle-brachial index (ABI) values were measured using the automated oscillometric method. An ABI value ＜ 0.9 was classified as the low ABI group. RESULTS: There were 10 KT patients (14.3%) in the low ABI group. Patients in the low ABI group had higher prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) (P = 0.041) and smoking (P = 0.036) and higher body fat mass (P = 0.022) but lower serum intact parathyroid hormone (P = 0.024) and lower serum adiponectin (P = 0.001) levels compared with the normal ABI group. According to multivariate logistic regression analysis after adjusting the confounding factors, serum adiponectin (adjusted odds ratio, 0.787; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.628-0.987; P = 0.038) was a significantly independent biomarker of PAD with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.923 (95% CI, 0.834-0.973; P ＜ 0.001) in KT patients. Multivariable stepwise linear regression analysis showed that DM (β = -0.301, P = 0.009) and body fat mass (β = -0.264, P = 0.021) were correlated with adiponectin level in KT patients. CONCLUSION: Low serum adiponectin level is a potential biomarker of PAD in KT patients.