Long term survey of body composition in hemodialysis patients using the Body Composition Monitor® (BCM)

Since 2 years all 265 incident patients in self-dialysis units were included in a prospective study. Every 6-months, clinical and biological nutritional evaluation was associated to a BCM measure. 205 pts have a complete set of data at start (age 60±16 years, BMI 25±5 kg/m2, albumin 37±4 g/L, prealbumin 0.32±0.1 g/L, CRP median 5 mg/L), 135 pts at 6 mo and 56 pts at 2 years. Measures were performed before HD session to ensure stability and reproducibility of body fluid compartments by the same examiner. Lean and fat masses (lean tissue index: LTI, fat tissue index: FTI) were normalized by square body height and compared with a reference range derived from 2000 healthy controls, according to gender and age. 28% of pts had values of LTI below the 10th percentile. A linear correlation exists (p