“
“Aim:  The aim of this study is to assess the characteristics of urinary system diseases and the role of the ultrasound screening and urinalysis screening for chronic kidney disease (CKD) in asymptomatic children in China. Methods: 

Between September 2008 and November 2008, 14 256 children excluding those with obvious symptoms and signs were enrolled in our study. All the subjects accepted ultrasound and urinary screening. A case–control study was performed to evaluate the relative risk of having stones in those children exposed to melamine formula. Results:  Of the enrolled children, 6.10% (869 of 14 256) showed abnormalities, of which 409 (2.87%) were established by ultrasound, 572 (4.01%) by urinalysis and 112 (0.79%) Selleckchem Torin 1 by both ultrasound screening and urinalysis. The abnormalities included congenital anomalies of kidney and urinary tract, urinary stones and/or hydronephrosis, leucocyturia GDC0199 and haematuria and/or proteinuria. Children exposed to melamine formula were 5.17 times as likely to have kidney stones as children exposed to no-melamine formula (95% confidence interval, 3.28–8.14; P < 0.001); the probability of kidney stones in melamine-fed infants were 6.28 times

as likely as those no melamine-fed (95% confidence interval, 3.71–10.65; P < 0.001). Conclusion:  Ultrasonography and urinalysis could complement each other and play important roles in the early diagnosis of anomalies of the urinary system, but urinalysis is a more cost-effective screening tool for CKD in children in China. Exposure to melamine-contaminated formula associated with urinary stones, especially in infants, was significantly higher than the control group. "
“Aim:  The ankle brachial index (ABI) is a marker for peripheral artery disease and can predict mortality in advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) and haemodialysis patients, respectively. However, it is Celecoxib seldom studied in Taiwan, an area with high prevalence of CKD and end-stage renal disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the predictors for mortality by using ABI value in patients with CKD and undergoing haemodialysis in Taiwan. Methods:  One hundred and sixty-nine

patients with CKD stage 3–5 and 231 haemodialysis patients were enrolled in one regional hospital. The mean follow-up period was 23.3 ± 3.3 months. Patients were stratified into three groups according to ABI value (<0.9, ≥0.9 to <1.3, and ≥1.3). The relative mortality risk was analyzed by Cox-regression methods. Results:  In multivariate analysis, an ABI of 1.3 or more (hazard ratio, 3.846; P = 0.043) and coronary artery disease (P = 0.012) were positively associated with overall mortality, and serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level (P = 0.042) was negatively associated with overall mortality. In addition, an ABI of less than 0.9 (P = 0.049), an ABI of 1.3 or more (P = 0.033), coronary artery disease (P = 0.024) and haemodialysis treatment (P = 0.