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Heritability, determinants and reference values of renal length: a family-based population study

Pruijm, Menno ; Ponte, Belen ; Ackermann, Daniel ; Vuistiner, Philippe ; Paccaud, Fred ; Guessous, Idris ; Ehret, Georg ; Eisenberger, Ute ; Mohaupt, Markus ; Burnier, Michel ; Martin, Pierre-Yves ; Bochud, Murielle

In: European Radiology, 2013, vol. 23, no. 10, p. 2899-2905

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    Title
    • Heritability, determinants and reference values of renal length: a family-based population study
    Author
    • Pruijm, Menno. Department of Nephrology, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland
    • Ponte, Belen. Department of Nephrology, University Hospital of Geneva (HUG), Geneva, Switzerland
    • Ackermann, Daniel. Department of Nephrology and Hypertension, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
    • Vuistiner, Philippe. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Route de la Corniche 10, 1010, Lausanne, Switzerland
    • Paccaud, Fred. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Route de la Corniche 10, 1010, Lausanne, Switzerland
    • Guessous, Idris. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Route de la Corniche 10, 1010, Lausanne, Switzerland
    • Ehret, Georg. Cardiology, Department of Specialties of Internal Medicine, Geneva University Hospital, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211, Geneva 14, Switzerland
    • Eisenberger, Ute. Department of Nephrology, University Hospital Essen-Duisburg, Essen-Duisburg, Germany
    • Mohaupt, Markus. Department of Nephrology and Hypertension, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
    • Burnier, Michel. Department of Nephrology, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland
    • Martin, Pierre-Yves. Department of Nephrology, University Hospital of Geneva (HUG), Geneva, Switzerland
    • Bochud, Murielle. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (IUMSP), Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), Route de la Corniche 10, 1010, Lausanne, Switzerland
    Document Type
    • Postprint
    OAI-PMH Identifier
    • oai:doc.rero.ch:317353
    Summary
    Objectives: In this population-based study, reference values were generated for renal length, and the heritability and factors associated with kidney length were assessed. Methods: Anthropometric parameters and renal ultrasound measurements were assessed in randomly selected nuclear families of European ancestry (Switzerland). The adjusted narrow sense heritability of kidney size parameters was estimated by maximum likelihood assuming multivariate normality after power transformation. Gender-specific reference centiles were generated for renal length according to body height in the subset of non-diabetic non-obese participants with normal renal function. Results: We included 374 men and 419 women (mean ± SD, age 47 ± 18 and 48 ± 17years, BMI 26.2 ± 4 and 24.5 ± 5kg/m2, respectively) from 205 families. Renal length was 11.4 ± 0.8cm in men and 10.7 ± 0.8cm in women; there was no difference between right and left renal length. Body height, weight and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were positively associated with renal length, kidney function negatively, age quadratically, whereas gender and hypertension were not. The adjusted heritability estimates of renal length and volume were 47.3 ± 8.5% and 45.5 ± 8.8%, respectively (P < 0.001). Conclusion: The significant heritability of renal length and volume highlights the familial aggregation of this trait, independently of age and body size. Population-based references for renal length provide a useful guide for clinicians. Key Points: • Renal length and volume are heritable traits, independent of age and size. • Based on a European population, gender-specific reference values/percentiles are provided for renal length. • Renal length correlates positively with body length and weight. • There was no difference between right and left renal lengths in this study. • This negates general teaching that the left kidney is larger and longer