title: Carnitine deficiency is associated with late-onset hypogonadism and depression in uremic men with hemodialysis.
abstract: Late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) and depression contribute to cardiovascular disease (CVD) in male hemodialysis (HD) patients. Carnitine deficiency is frequently observed in HD patients, playing a role in CVD. We examined whether carnitine deficiency was independently associated with LOH and depression in these patients. Twenty-six male HD patients underwent determinations of serum levels of free carnitine and testosterone. Status of LOH and depression were evaluated by questionnaires using aging male symptoms' (AMS) scale and self-rating depression scale (SDS), respectively. Free carnitine and testosterone levels in male HD patients were significantly lower than those in age-matched healthy male subjects. Linear regression analysis showed that AMS scale was positively associated with SDS. Univariate regression analysis revealed that total carnitine (inversely), free carnitine (inversely) and HD duration were correlated with AMS scale. Multiple stepwise regression analysis revealed that free carnitine was an independent determinant of AMS scale. Furthermore, free carnitine was also independently correlated with SDS in male HD patients. This study demonstrated that decreased free carnitine levels were independently associated with AMS scale and SDS in male HD patients. The observations suggest that decreased free carnitine levels could be a marker and therapeutic target of LOH and depression in uremic men with HD.
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine .
authors.forename: Kei
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fukami
authors.forename: Sho-ichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yamagishi
authors.forename: Kazuko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sakai
authors.forename: Yusuke
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kaida
authors.forename: Aki
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Minami
authors.forename: Yosuke
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakayama
authors.forename: Ryotaro
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ando
authors.forename: Nana
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Obara
authors.forename: Seiji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.forename: Yoshifumi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wada
authors.forename: Seiya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Okuda
mesh_terms: D002331:Carnitine / Q000172:deficiency*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D005058:Eunuchism / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D014511:Uremia / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications*
chemical_list: D002331:Carnitine
keywords: AMS scale; SDS; carnitine deficiency; depression; hemodialysis; late-onset hypogonadism