A Study of Bio-Markers of Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Chronic Kidney Disease

Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is one of the most important health challenges faced by the world today, with new cases being added at an alarming rate. Controlling traditional risk factors has not been effective in bringing down the incidence of the disease. CKD is associated with inflammation, morbidity, poor quality of life, decreased life-expectancy and death. Oxidative stress represents the imbalance between prooxidants and antioxidants in our body. Though a number of studies have focussed on the association between CKD and oxidative stress, majority of them are based on patients on hemodialysis. Moreover, there is confusion about the way the levels of some of these biomarkers vary in response to oxidative stress. This study was designed to study the biomarker of inflammation (CRP), MDA as a marker of oxidative stress, and SOD, GPx and TAC as parameters of antioxidant activity in controls and patients in different stages of CKD. We found that CRP and MDA values increase as disease progresses while there is decrease in the levels of SOD and GPx. The TAC values in patients do not vary much from that of controls. Efforts should be made to identify and reduce oxidative stress from the time of diagnosis of CKD.