The predictors of an improvement in the eGFR
The patient characteristics including echocardiographic variables, biomarkers, and drug therapy were compared between the patients whose eGFR increased (N=37) and those the eGFR decreased (N=53)(Table 2) during the study. When comparing the two groups, the ratio of male patients was larger in the patients whose eGFR increased than the patients whose eGFR decreased (P=0.03). The patients whose eGFR increased had a lower left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF)(P=0.02), larger left atrial diameter (P=0.04), higher serum creatinine level (P<0.01) and lower eGFR (P=0.02) than those whose eGFR decreased. In the control group (CA (-)), the number of patients whose eGFR decreased tended to be larger than that whose eGFR increased (P=0.054). A multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to investigate the predictors associated with an improvement in the renal function. Catheter ablation of AF (OR: 2.81; 95% CI: 1.08-7.36 P=0.04) and the baseline LVEF (OR: 0.95; 95% CI: 0.91-1.00 P=0.04) were independent predictors of the improvement in the eGFR at one year of follow-up (Table 3). The change in the eGFR over one year was evaluated and stratified by the CKD stages (Figure 5). The eGFR decreased in all CKD stages except CKD stage G4 in the control group, while the eGFR increased in CKD stage G3a, stage G3b, and stage G4 in the ablation group. In the patients with CKD stage G3a, the change in the eGFR in the ablation group was significantly larger than that in the control group (2.7 ± 7.7 vs. -5.1 ± 6.8 mL/min/1.73 m2, P<0.01).