Open AccessRelationship between sex and cardiovascular mortality in chronic kidney disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Author(s) -
Sultana Shajahan,
Janaki Amin,
Jacqueline K. Phillips,
Cara M. Hildreth
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0254554
Subject(s) - medicine , meta analysis , kidney disease , population , relative risk , subgroup analysis , risk of mortality , medline , disease , cochrane library , confidence interval , demography , environmental health , sociology , political science , law
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a significant health challenge associated with high cardiovascular mortality risk. Historically, cardiovascular mortality risk has been found to higher in men than women in the general population. However, recent research has highlighted that this risk may be similar or even higher in women than men in the CKD population. To address the inconclusive and inconsistent evidence regarding this relationship between sex and cardiovascular mortality within CKD patients, a systematic review and meta-analysis of articles published between January 2004 and October 2020 using PubMed/Medline, EMBASE, Scopus and Cochrane databases was performed. Forty-eight studies were included that reported cardiovascular mortality among adult men relative to women with 95% confidence intervals (CI) or provided sufficient data to calculate risk estimates (RE). Random effects meta-analysis of reported and calculated estimates revealed that male sex was associated with elevated cardiovascular mortality in CKD patients (RE 1.13, CI 1.03–1.25). Subsequent subgroup analyses indicated higher risk in men in studies based in the USA and in men receiving haemodialysis or with non-dialysis-dependent CKD. Though men showed overall higher cardiovascular mortality risk than women, the increased risk was marginal, and appropriate risk awareness is necessary for both sexes with CKD. Further research is needed to understand the impact of treatment modality and geographical distribution on sex differences in cardiovascular mortality in CKD.