RATIONALE

Frailty is associated with morbidity and mortality in abdominal organ transplantation but has not been examined in lung transplantation.

OBJECTIVES

To examine the construct and predictive validity of frailty phenotypes in lung transplant candidates.

METHODS

In a multicenter prospective cohort, we measured frailty with the Fried Frailty Phenotype (FFP) and Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB). We evaluated construct validity through comparisons with conceptually related factors. In a nested case-control study of frail and nonfrail subjects, we measured serum IL-6, tumor necrosis factor receptor 1, insulin-like growth factor I, and leptin. We estimated the association between frailty and disability using the Lung Transplant Valued Life Activities disability scale. We estimated the association between frailty and risk of delisting or death before transplant using multivariate logistic and Cox models, respectively.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

Of 395 subjects, 354 completed FFP assessments and 262 completed SPPB assessments; 28% were frail by FFP (95% confidence interval [CI], 24-33%) and 10% based on the SPPB (95% CI, 7-14%). By either measure, frailty correlated more strongly with exercise capacity and grip strength than with lung function. Frail subjects tended to have higher plasma IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 and lower insulin-like growth factor I and leptin. Frailty by either measure was associated with greater disability. After adjusting for age, sex, diagnosis, and transplant center, both FFP and SPPB were associated with increased risk of delisting or death before lung transplant. For every 1-point worsening in score, hazard ratios were 1.30 (95% CI, 1.01-1.67) for FFP and 1.53 (95% CI, 1.19-1.59) for SPPB.

CONCLUSIONS

Frailty is prevalent among lung transplant candidates and is independently associated with greater disability and an increased risk of delisting or death.

BACKGROUND

In the context of orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT), renal dysfunction is used as a criterion for simultaneous liver-kidney transplantation. Changes in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) the year before and after OLT have not been well defined.

METHODS

In a cohort of 416 OLT patients from 1996 to 2009, estimated GFR (eGFR) was assessed during the 12 months before OLT (period A), at time of OLT (period B), and the 12 months after OLT (period C). Outcomes included progression to end stage renal disease (ESRD), length of stay, and mortality.

RESULTS

The overall rate of progression to ESRD over 15 years of follow-up was 0.155/person-year and was strongly associated with eGFR <60 (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.7; P < 0.001), diabetes (HR = 2.6; P < 0.001), and with a combination of the 2 (HR = 5.5; P < 0.0001). Mean eGFR decreased from period A (86 mL/min per 1.73 m) to period B (77; P < 0.001) to period C (71; P < 0.001), with similar decreases in eGFR across subgroups of clinical variables. Patients with eGFR less than 60 mL/min per 1.73 m at OLT had acute and large decreases in eGFR from periods A to B, then increases to period C. Length of stay was associated with eGFR at OLT, hepatorenal syndrome, dialysis requirement, model for end-stage liver disease score, and alcoholic liver disease. Twelve-month mortality was strongly associated with time-dependent change in eGFR, hepatorenal syndrome, dialysis requirement, hepatitis C, and model for end-stage liver disease era transplantation but was not associated with eGFR at OLT.

CONCLUSIONS

Among OLT patients, renal function worsened in all subgroups from before to after OLT, but the association of progression to ESRD was particularly high among patients with both diabetes and eGFR less than 60 at the time of OLT. This suggests that diabetes could be considered as a criterion when making decisions regarding simultaneous liver-kidney transplantation.

BACKGROUND

Liver disease is common during human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, but valid serum fibrosis markers are lacking. We hypothesize that HIV monoinfection and HIV/hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection is associated with an enhanced liver fibrosis (ELF) score higher than that for uninfected controls and examine whether this association is affected by factors other than liver injury.

METHODS

The association of HIV and HIV/HCV coinfection with the ELF score was evaluated using multivariable regression after controlling for transient elastography-measured liver stiffness and traditional and HIV-related factors in a cross-sectional analysis of 297 women.

RESULTS

HIV/HCV-coinfected and HIV-monoinfected women had higher median ELF scores than controls (9.6, 8.5, and 8.2, respectively). After adjustment for demographic, behavioral, and metabolic factors and for inflammatory markers, HIV/HCV coinfection remained associated with a 9% higher ELF score (95% confidence interval [CI], 5%-13%), while the association of HIV monoinfection was substantially attenuated (1% higher ELF score; 95% CI, -2% to 4%). After further adjustment for liver stiffness, HIV/HCV coinfection remained associated with 6% higher levels (95% CI, 3%-10%). In HIV/HCV-coinfected and HIV-monoinfected women, higher liver stiffness values were associated with higher ELF scores, as were older age and a nadir CD4(+) T-cell count of <200 cells/mm(3).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that the ELF score can be used to assess liver fibrosis severity in HIV-infected women. However, higher ELF scores may reflect extrahepatic fibrosis in HIV-infected patients with a history of severe immunosuppression or advanced age.