Effects of switching from oral administration to intravenous injection of l-carnitine on lipid metabolism in hemodialysis patients. Kei Fukami, Sho-ichi Yamagishi, Kazuko Sakai, Makoto Nasu, Seiya Okuda. Clinical Kidney Journal, Volume 7, Issue 5
Deficiency of carnitine can lead to the development of cardiovascular diseases in patients receiving hemodialysis. Dyslipidemia is involved in the development of cardiovascular diseases and its risk of prevalence is higher in hemodialysis patients. In the study, the effect of l-carnitine on lipid balance in hemodialysis patients when switching from oral intake to intravenous administration is analyzed.
Methods
9 hemodialysis patients who received oral (900 mg/day) L-carnitine during the year were involved in the study. Experts investigated whether parameters of the lipid profile improved after switching to 1000 mg of intravenous l-carnitine.
Results
After intravenous administration of L-carnitine for 1 week, the total amount and level of free and acyl carnitine were significantly increased before and after hemodialysis. During 1-4 weeks of intravenous therapy, the amount of free fatty acids in the serum decreased (261 ± 124 mmol/l compared to 322 ± 104), while the level of high-density lipoproteins increased (1.46 ± 0.49 compared to 1.63 ± 0.62 mmol/l)
Result
Thus, the study shows that switching to the intravenous l-carnitine method improves the lipid profile, which in turn proves the clinical effectiveness of the intravenous method in the treatment of hemodialysis patients.
