Aguilera A, Codoceo R, Selgas R, Picronell M, Garcia P, Diaz C, Sanchez C, Bajo MA
Orexigen and anorexigen plasma levels in peritoneal dialysis patients. Their relationship with nutritional parameters.
17th Annual CAPD Conference
Perit Dial Int Suppl 1 (Feb) 17:S11 1997

Why patients on dialysis don't eat is not entirely clear, and the reasons are undoubtedly multifactorial. In CAPD the role of dialysate causing diminished appetite has been mentioned. See also the abstract by Fernstrom et al at this meeting, pointing toward delayed gastric emptying in CAPD patients. However, in this paper Aguilera et al focus on accumulation of possibly anorexigenic substances in CAPD patients, such as TNF-alpha and cholecystokinin (CCK), as well as plasma levels of neuropeptide Y (NPY), which may have an appetite promoting effect. TNF-alpha and CCK levels were high in most patients, and NPY levels tended to be normal. There seemed to be some relation to anorexia, in that in 16/42 patients with anorexia, TNF-alpha levels were higher (mean 76 pg/ml) than in patients without GI symptoms (mean 52). Such a relation was not found re: plasma CCK levels.

Comment: The authors conclude that high TNF-alpha levels, especially, may be causal in anorexia in CAPD patients. The data supporting this contention are scant, however. There is a plethora of mediators that is increased in ESRD patients, and the difference in plasma TNF-alpha levels between the anorectic and non-anorectic groups was not impressive. (John T. Daugirdas, M.D., University of Illinois at Chicago)

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17th Annual CAPD Conference
CRF by organ system : Nutrition