Relation of serum albumin and C-reactive protein to hypotensive episodes during hemodialysis sessions

To evaluate the effect of albumin serum levels and C-reactive protein (CRP) on the course of dialysis induced hypotension (DIH) in chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients, we studied 58 chronic hemodialysis patients in our center during 2007. We investigated the correlation bet­ween serum albumin, highly sensitive CRP (hs-CRP) and DIH. The mean of the serum albumin levels was 4.2 ± 0.5 g/dL, and 32.8% of the patients revealed hypoalbuminemia. Occurrence of DIH among HD patients was 27.6%. The mean of serum albumin levels in the DIH group was significantly lower compared with the normotensive group (3.9 ± 0.4 vs 4.3 ± 0.5g/dL, respec­tively, P= 0.008). The mean of the hs-CRP levels was significantly higher in the DIH group compared with the normotensive group (12.9 ± 12 vs. 7.2 ± 5.2 mg/dL, respectively, P= 0.01). We conclude that high level of CRP and hypoalbuminemia may be predictors of DIH.