Abnormal carnitine metabolism in hemodialysis patients on different anticoagulants

IntroductionWe aimed to determine whether unfractionated heparin (UH) and low molecular weight heparin (LH) contribute to aberrant carnitine metabolism in patients receiving hemodialysis.MethodsThe rate of increase in serum free fatty acids (FFAs) and the ratio of acylcarnitine to free carnitine (AC/FC) from before to after hemodialysis were determined in patients receiving UH and LH. Additionally, the effect of switching patients to UH from LH was examined.ResultsAC/FC was significantly higher in the UH group. In addition, serum FFAs in that group increased to 0.825 +/- 0.270 after dialysis from 0.172 +/- 0.160 before dialysis, showing a positive correlation with AC/FC. Furthermore, AC/FC was observed to be significantly higher in patients who were switched to UH from LH at 3 months after the change.ConclusionCompared with UH, LH has a lesser effect on lipid metabolism, suggesting that it also has a lesser effect on carnitine metabolism.