Early Disease Onset and Arthritis are Predictors of CKD Development in FMF Patients

Objective: Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an autosomal recessive genetic disease characterized by fever and serositis attacks. The most important complication is amyloidosis. In FMF patients, chronic kidney disease (CKD) can develop without amyloid development.  The aim of the study is to evaluate the development of CKD in FMF patients and to determine the factors that are involved in this development.

Material-Methods: One hundred seventy eight FMF patients who were followed up between 2000 and 2020 were included in the study. FMF diagnosis was made according to the Tel-Hashomer criteria. Genetic tests were studied in cases which there was suspicion of diagnosis. Clinical and demographic characteristics of patients and all laboratory data including urea, creatinine, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), and proteinuria in 24-hour urine at the time of first and last admission were evaluated.

Results: The mean age of the patients was 34.53 ± 10.72, the follow-up period was 6.12 ± 3.94, and the diagnosis age was 21.7 ± 11.5 years.  The percentage of CKD development at first and last admission were 13.5% and 19.1%, respectively. The risk factors associated with the development of CKD were early disease onset and arthritis attacks.

Conclusion: The role of genotype characteristics in the development of CKD has not been determined. Patients diagnosed with FMF disease at an early age and especially with arthritis attacks should be closely monitored in terms of the risk of developing CKD.

Cite this article as: Büberci R, Duranay M. Early disease onset and arthritis are predictors of chronic kidney disease development in familial mediterranean fever patients. Turk J Nephrol. 2022;31(4):284-289.