SAN DIEGO, Nov 2, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Charcoal may provide a new approach
to managing the high rate of heart disease in patients with advanced kidney
disease, U.S. researchers said.
Patients with advanced kidney disease have high rates of atherosclerosis --
hardening of the arteries -- and death from heart disease.
Dr. Valentina Kon of Vanderbilt University, said oral activated charcoal, a
product called AST-120, which has traditionally been used as an emergency
treatment for certain types of poisoning may exert beneficial effects in kidney
disease.
"We found that oral activated charcoal lessens atherosclerotic lesions in
experimental mice with kidney damage," Kon said in a statement. "This is
especially important because there is no effective treatment to reduce the high
rate of cardiovascular mortality in patients with end-stage renal disease."
The study found mice with profoundly reduced renal mass, treatment with AST-120
led to a dramatic decrease in atherosclerosis. The improvement in
atherosclerosis was unrelated to changes in blood pressure or cholesterol
levels, rather the effect appeared related to reduced inflammation in the blood
vessels, Kon said.
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