A new study reported that the presence of some heart diseases may increase a person's risk of kidney failure.
In an analysis published by the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, researchers found that those with a history of heart failure, atrial fibrillation, coronary heart disease and stroke were more than 11 times more likely to develop kidney failure.
Researchers attributed the University of New York's School of Medicine this high risk to the "two-way relationship" between the heart and kidneys, sometimes referred to as cardiovascular syndrome.
"Many doctors may realize that cardiovascular patients are at risk of developing kidney disease, but as far as I know, this is the first study that determines the contribution of various cardiovascular diseases to the development of kidney failure," said Professor Johnny Hopkins University Dr. Conyeiro Matsushita.
According to the US National Institutes of Health, more than 600,000 adults in the United States suffer from kidney failure, and more than 450,000 of them perform dialysis.
The researchers examined data on 9047 American adults who did not show signs of heart disease when they enrolled in the study, and 2598 of the study participants were hospitalized with cardiovascular disease.
They found that the incidence of major cardiovascular disease was associated with an increased risk of kidney failure, with an increased risk of heart failure.
The researchers noted that study participants with heart failure were 11.4 times more likely to develop kidney failure, compared to participants who did not suffer from cardiovascular disease.
