Tier 1 — highest

Vitamin K Supplementation to Improve Vascular Stiffness in CKD: The K4Kidneys Randomized Controlled Trial

Miles D Witham, Jennifer S Lees, Myra White, Margaret Band, Samira Bell, Donna J Chantler, Ian Ford, Roberta L Fulton, Gwen Kennedy, Roberta C Littleford, Ian V McCrea, Deborah McGlynn, Maurizio Panarelli, Maximilian R Ralston, Elaine Rutherford, Alison Severn, Nicola Thomson, Jamie P Traynor, Allan D Struthers, Kirsty Wetherall, Patrick B Mark
Journal of the American Society of Nephrology : JASN 2020 31(10):2434-2445

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 32817311
PubMed Central
PMC7609010
DOI
10.1681/ASN.2020020225
Trial registry
View on ClinicalTrials.gov Registered trial — results not yet published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Funding
Support is recorded from British Heart Foundation, Chief Scientist Office, Department of Health. See the original publication for grant and material-support details.
Competing interests
A competing-interest declaration is not available in the indexed abstract or accessible disclosure metadata.

Study snapshot

DesignRandomized controlled clinical trial
ModelHuman participants
Sample159 participants in the modified intention-to-treat analysis; CKD stages 3b–4
InterventionVitamin K2 400 μg/day or placebo
Duration12 months
EndpointsCarotid-femoral pulse-wave velocity; Vascular calcification; Blood pressure; Physical function

What the study showed, in plain terms

This publication examines carotid-femoral pulse-wave velocity, vascular calcification, blood pressure, physical function. Study population or evidence base: 159 participants in the modified intention-to-treat analysis; CKD stages 3b–4. Intervention or exposure: Vitamin K2 400 μg/day or placebo.

Key findings

Vitamin K2 did not improve arterial stiffness, blood pressure or the other vascular outcomes examined in K4Kidneys.

What this study can and cannot tell us

The findings concern advanced chronic kidney disease and cannot be directly generalized to healthy adults. The accompanying pooled analysis overlaps earlier trials.

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