Chronic kidney disease stages 3-5 and cardiovascular disease in the veterans affairs population.

Aim: Cardiovascular complications are common in patients with chronic kidney disease in the general population. The study aims to investigate the prevalence and prognosis of CKD stages 3-5 in the veterans affairs (VA) population, which is sicker with more co-morbid conditions.
Methods: In this case-controlled study of 6,432 men the associations of risk factors with CKD and its risk of mortality were estimated using, primarily, logistic regression analysis.
Results: The 1,045 (16.2%) patients with CKD stages 3-5 were older (72 +/- 10 vs. 59 +/- 13 years, P < 0.0001) with more hypertension (53.6 vs. 39.6%, P < 0.0001), diabetes (24.9 vs. 19.8%, P < 0.0002), and CVD (35.3 vs. 17.8%, P < 0.0001) at baseline. Age > or =65 years (odds ratio [95% CI]) (4.95 [4.22-5.82]), hypertension (1.56 [1.34-1.79]), diabetes mellitus (1.21 [1.03-1.43]), CVD (1.71 [1.47-2.00]), and White not Hispanic (1.57 [1.32-1.85]) were independently associated with CKD. The prevalence of CVD at baseline increased with decreasing renal function. Old age (1.98 [1.66-2.35]), CKD (1.94 [1.61-2.33], CVD (1.46 [1.23-1.74]) and tobacco use (1.91 [1.05-3.47]) were independently associated with the 750 (11.7%) deaths.
Conclusion: Among veterans, traditional cardiovascular risk factors, CVD, and CKD are highly prevalent. CKD is associated with increased risk of baseline CVD and follow-up mortality.