Figure 1
Representative ultrasound images of the kidney. A. Showing absolute renal length (RL) measurement. The white dotted line indicates the absolute RL. B. Showing cortical and parenchymal thickness measurements. The white dotted arrow indicates the renal parenchymal thickness; white solid arrow indicates renal cortical thickness.
Table 1
Baseline parameters of male and female patient populations
| Parameter | Male (n = 70) | Female (n = 30) |
|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 67 (9) | 68 (9) |
| Serum creatinine (mg/dL) | 1.91 (0.66) | 1.78 (0.46) |
| eGFR (mL/min/1.72 m2) | 46.4 (12.0)* | 36.2 (7.8) |
| Absolute length (cm) | ||
| Right kidney | 9.0 (0.81) | 8.9 (0.99) |
| Left kidney | 9.1 (0.84) | 8.9 (0.99) |
| Relative length (mm/cm) | ||
| Right kidney | 0.57 (0.05) | 0.60 (0.06) |
| Left kidney | 0.57 (0.05) | 0.60 (0.06) |
Table 2
Ultrasound parameters of right and left kidneys
Table 3
Correlations between age, renal ultrasound measurements, eGFR, and serum creatinine
| Parameter | Serum creatinine | eGFR | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| r | P | r | P | |
| Age | –0.129 | 0.19 | 0.033 | 0.75 |
| Absolute renal length | ||||
| Right kidney | –0.166 | 0.10 | 0.241 | 0.02* |
| Left kidney | –0.098 | 0.33 | 0.204 | 0.054 |
| Mean right and left kidneys | –0.138 | 0.20 | 0.212 | 0.03* |
| Relative renal length | ||||
| Right kidney | –0.179 | 0.25 | –0.09 | 0.51 |
| Left kidney | –0.111 | 0.08 | –0.06 | 0.88 |
| Mean right and left kidneys | –0.154 | 0.16 | 0.028 | 0.75 |
| Parenchymal thickness | ||||
| Right kidney | –0.130 | 0.20 | 0.265 | 0.01* |
| Left kidney | –0.115 | 0.25 | 0.233 | 0.02* |
| Mean right and left kidneys | –0.129 | 0.18 | 0.264 | 0.01* |
| Cortical thickness | ||||
| Right kidney | –0.178 | 0.08 | 0.274 | 0.01* |
| Left kidney | –0.191 | 0.06 | 0.275 | 0.01* |
| Mean right and left kidneys | –0.202 | 0.043* | 0.300 | 0.002* |
Figure 2
Receiver operating characteristic curves of sonographic parameters and serum creatinine level in predicting early chronic kidney disease. RL, absolute renal length; RPT, renal parenchymal thickness; RRL, relative renal length; RCT, renal cortical thickness; Scr, serum creatinine level.
Figure 3
Renal cortical thicknesses in different chronic kidney disease (CKD) grades. Dark gray bar ≥6.0 mm; light gray bar <6.0 mm.
Figure 4
Renal cortical thicknesses. A. In groups of diabetic and nondiabetic patients with chronic kidney disease. Dark gray bar ≥6.0 mm; light gray bar <6.0 mm. B. In groups of patients with cardiovascular and without cardiovascular disease, but both with chronic kidney disease. Dark gray bar ≥6.0 mm; light gray bar <6.0 mm.