Clinical characteristics of patients at baseline and during follow-up stratified by survival and by CVD events.

<p>Mean ± SD [25., 50. und 75. percentile in case of non-normal distribution] or number (%).</p><p>^{<b><i>a</i></b>}p<0.05;</p><p>^{<b><i>b</i></b>}p<0.01;</p><p>^{<b><i>c</i></b>}p<0.005;</p><p>^{<b><i>d</i></b>}p<0.001 – comparison between survivors and non-survivors as well as between patients with and without cardiovascular disease events.</p><p>*<b>Coronary artery disease events</b>: myocardial infarction, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, aortocoronary bypass.</p><p>**<b>Cardiovascular disease events</b>: myocardial infarction, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, aortocoronary bypass, angiographically-proven coronary stenosis ≥50%, ischemic or hemorrhagic cerebral infarction, transient ischemic attack, carotid stenosis and carotid endarterectomy.</p><p>***<b>Peripheral arterial disease events</b>: significant ultrasound- or angiographically-proven vascular stenosis, percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, peripheral bypass, amputation.</p><p>‡Follow-up time was calculated as the time from the start of dialysis until the patient died or the end of the observation period was reached.