Assessment of CXCL-16 Chemokine and Body Mass Index in Patients with Renal Impairment Attending Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital Kano

Abstract Background: Renal impairment and its various complications are associated with enormous economic burden, increased morbidity and mortality as such; obtaining an early biomarker for this disease is crucial. The aim of this study was to assess the serum levels of CXCL-16 and Body Mass Index in patients with renal impairment attending Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano. Materials and Methods: A total of 111 patients with renal impairment (64 males and 47 females) and 56 apparently healthy controls with age between 4-70 years were used for the study. Blood samples were collected from the participants and serum urea and creatinine were determined using Urease Berthelot’s reaction and Alkaline picrate methods respectively, while serum CXCL-16 was determined using quantitative enzyme linked immunosorbent assay technique and BMI was calculated using the weight and height of the subjects using standard techniques. Results: This study reveals that, higher frequency of 51.4 % was observed in patients within the range of 18-45 years while lower frequency of 9.9% was observed in patients age<18 years. Males recorded higher frequency of 57.7% while females recorded a frequency of 42.3% with the ratio of 1.36:1 and higher frequencies of 60.4% was observed in BMI of 18- 24.9 kg/m2 . The mean serum urea, creatinine and CXCL-16 were significantly (p = 0.00) higher in patients group compared with controls., while BMI was significantly (p < 0.000) lower in patients group compared with controls. A significant positive (p=0.00) correlation was established between serum creatinine and urea (r = 0.95, p=0.00) and between CXCL-16 with creatinine and urea (r = 0.99, p=0.00 and r = 0.98, p = 0.00respectively). Conclusion: The result revealed significantly higher level of serum urea, creatinine and CXCL-16 chemokine with lower in BMI in patients with renal impairment. Hence, patients who present with symptoms of this condition may be recommended for CXCL-16 chemokine analysis, which may serve as an early biomarker for the diagnosis of kidney disease