Pain Interference in End Stage Kidney Disease is Associated with Changes in Gut Microbiome Features Before and After Kidney Transplantation.
Mark B Lockwood, George E Chlipala, Mark Maeinschein-Cline and 11 others
PMID 36184305WHAT IT FOUND
Pain that interfered with daily life was linked to different gut bacteria in kidney transplant adults.
Those with pain had 5-fold lower Akkermansia after transplant. This is a link, not proof that a treatment works.
Key findings
01Of 19 participants, 11 reported pain interference at baseline; 7 continued to report pain interference at 3 months posttransplant.
02Participants with pain interference had a 5-fold lower abundance of Akkermansia bacteria at posttransplant than those without pain interference.
03Participants with pain interference at baseline had a much lower Burden of Kidney Disease score than those without pain interference, 19.89 versus 62.50 on a 0 to 100 scale.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The sample was very small, so some differences may be missed and findings may not apply broadly. This was an observational study, so it shows links, not that gut bacteria cause pain or that changing bacteria reduces pain. Transplant surgery, immunosuppression, and prophylactic antibiotics or antivirals were given together, so the contribution of any single component cannot be separated. Participants were all scheduled for living-donor transplants, who often have lower symptom burden, so results may not apply to deceased-donor recipients. The study collected no diet data and could not control all factors that affect the gut microbiome.
Declared interests
The paper lists NIH extramural and non-U.S. government research support. No author conflicts of interest are reported in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that Akkermansia or probiotics cause or relieve pain after transplant. This was an observational pilot with no treatment test, and transplant, immunosuppression, antibiotics or antivirals, and surgery happened together.