STRUCTURED exercise routines and higher activity could help to slow down the decline in kidney function in older patients with chronic kidney disease, as well as improve their general health overall, as shown in a new study conducted at the University of California, San Francisco, USA. Researchers wanted to establish whether there were certain biomarkers of kidney health that were affected by exercise interventions, in order to then investigate the mechanisms for any observed influence on kidney function.
The study examined a group of 1,381 randomly selected sedentary patients aged 70–89 years. Patients either took part in a 2-year structured, moderate-intensity exercise intervention, or a health education programme. For those in the exercise intervention group, their activity was measured by their step count. Kidney health was assessed via 14 serum and urine biomarkers taken at baseline, 1 year, and 2 years.
Obtained data showed that patients in the exercise intervention cohort walked on average 291 more steps a day than those in the health education cohort. However, there was no significant association between increased exercise and changes in the biomarkers of kidney health. Only patients in the highest quartile of activity (minimum of 3,470 steps a day) had substantially improved in selected biomarkers, such as reductions in urine albumin, associated lipocalin, epidermal growth factor, and uromodulin.
Although the exercise intervention did not impact the measures of kidney health, increased activity was associated with improvements in tubular injury, general inflammation, and the slope of the estimated glomerular filtration rate. Increased activity was also linked with improvements in biomarkers of glomerular injury, tubular function, and tubulointerstitial repair.
Authors hope that the results of this study will “help to clarify the overall impact of physical activity on kidney decline.” In future, research should continue to explore whether the biomarkers of kidney health change over time, and whether exercise can hinder natural ageing in the kidney.
