Basal metabolic rate and resting energy expenditure per body weight before and after kidney transplantation in pediatric patients with chronic kidney disease

Abstract Background Few studies on the basal metabolism of pediatric patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have been published. We investigated whether basal metabolism changes in such patients before and after kidney transplantation, during the recovery of kidney function. Methods We prospectively enrolled 10 Japanese patients aged 15 years or younger, who underwent kidney transplantation for CKD at the Department of Nephrology, Toho University School of Medicine, for whom the basal metabolic rate (BMR) could be measured before and approximately 1 month after kidney transplantation. The resting energy expenditure per body weight (REE/Wt) before and after transplantation was compared with the age-matched BMR and weight-corrected reference BMR for Japanese individuals. In addition, the REE/Wt and respiratory quotient (RQ) before and after transplantation were compared. Results The post-transplant REE/Wt was higher than the age-matched BMR in 5 of the 10 patients studied, all of whom had a standard deviation score weight of − 2 or less. The change in the mean ± standard deviation REE/Wt before and after transplantation was not significant (from 42.6 ± 10.0 to 44.1 ± 11.2), whereas the change in the RQ (from 0.89 ± 0.05 to 1.01 ± 0.05) was. Conclusions In pediatric patients with CKD in this study, the similar REE/Wt and increased RQ before versus after transplantation suggest that REE/Wt is influenced by body size rather than kidney function.