Cortical perfusion as assessed with contrast-enhanced ultrasound is lower in patients with chronic kidney disease than in healthy subjects but increases under low salt conditions.

Background: Disturbances in renal microcirculation play an important role in the pathophysiology of chronic kidney disease (CKD), but the lack of easy accessible techniques hampers our understanding of the regulation of the renal microcirculation in humans. We assessed whether contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) can identify differences in cortical perfusion and alterations induced by different dietary salt intakes in CKD patients and controls.

Methods: Participants underwent CEUS twice: once after 5 days of high-salt (HS) intake, and again after 5 days of low salt (LS) diet.