Glomerular Filtration Rate as a Prognostic Factor for Long-Term Mortality after Acute Pulmonary Embolism.

Background: In-hospital mortality for patients presenting with acute pulmonary embolism (PE) has been reported to be up to 7 times higher for patients with decreased estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). However, few studies have assessed its effect on long-term mortality.

Objective: To determine the impact of eGFR and creatinine clearance (CrCl) on long-term all-cause mortality following acute PE in association with other routine laboratory analyses and comorbidities.

Patients/methods: The prospective study enrolled 141 consecutive patients presenting with objectively confirmed acute PE. Demographic, clinical data, comorbidities, and laboratory values were recorded. CrCl and GFR were estimated using the Cockcroft-Gault, MDRD, and chronic kidney disease (CKD)-EPI equations. Patients were followed up at 90 days and 1 year after the event.

Results: In univariate analyses, age, active cancer, PE severity index (PESI), CrCl and eGFR, D-dimer value, and high-density lipoprotein level were found to be significantly associated with mortality in 90 days and 1 year. Additionally, body mass index was significant in the 1-year follow-up. CrCl by Cockcroft-Gault (90-day: area under the curve [AUC] 0.763; 1-year: AUC 0.718) demonstrated higher discriminatory power for predicting mortality than eGFR by the MDRD (AUC 0.686; AUC 0.609) and CKD-EPI (AUC 0.697; AUC 0.630) equations. In multivariate analyses, active cancer, CrCl by Cockcroft-Gault (90-day: hazard ratio [HR] 0.948, 95% CI 0.919-0.979; 1-year: HR 0.967, 95% CI 0.943-0.991), eGFR by CKD-EPI (90-day: HR 0.948, 95% CI 0.915-0.983; 1-year: HR 0.971, 95% CI 0.945-0.998) were found to be independent predictors of mortality. eGFR by MDRD, D-dimer, and PESI value were significant prognostic factors for 90-day mortality.

Conclusion: Decreased renal function is a prognostic factor for increased all-cause mortality 90 days and 1 year after acute PE.