According to a study appearing in an issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, high levels of phosphate in the blood carry with them an increased heart health risk, but taking a drug that targets phosphate does not improve cardiovascular issues in patients who suffer from mild kidney disease. The findings suggest that that reducing your dietary intake of phosphate might be the best way for patients to reduce the mineral’s effects on the heart. However, this advice could change depending on future studies.
Higher blood levels of phosphate, even those that are considered to be in the ‘normal range’, are known to be linked with an overall increased risk of dying from heart-related issues. This was first demonstrated in patients with chronic kidney disease and subsequently across the general population. Researchers have suggested a number of possible reasons for this, including phosphate’s ability to promote calcification which can cause a stiffening of blood vessels and its potential to cause structural changes in the heart, for example, increased wall thickness.
A team of researchers conducted a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial of 120 patients who suffered with early stage chronic kidney disease that tested the effects of the phosphate binder sevelamer carbonate, which is approved only for patients in the event of kidney failure. The team looked to see if the drug might reduce heart muscle thickness and decrease markers of blood vessel stiffness after the patients had gone through 40 weeks of treatment.
At the end of the study, the investigators found that there were no differences in any of the measures of cardiovascular structure and function between the groups. However, only 56 per cent of patients took more than 80 per cent of the study medication.
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