Evidence mapPaperPMID 41888709Full record

ArticleBMC nephrology2026

Development of a high-altitude renal disease diagnostic model based on machine learning and multiple biomarker detection: a retrospective study of 19,068 patients.

Chenhao Liu, Menglin Luo, Sergio Benardini, Xinyao Ji, Yuheng Xiao, Yuli Luo, Wei Yan, Feng Zheng, Zi-An Li, Changchun Niu

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Article in BMC nephrology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Chenhao Liu *Department of Orthopedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, Chongqing, 40038, China.
Menglin Luo *Department of Laboratory Medicine, Chongqing General Hospital, Chongqing, 40038, China.
Sergio BenardiniDepartment of Experimental Medicine, University of Tor Vergata, 00184, Rome, Italy.
Xinyao JiDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 40038, China.
Yuheng XiaoDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 40038, China.
Yuli LuoDepartment of Laboratory, Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital, Xining, Qinghai, 810007, China.
Wei YanDepartment of Laboratory, Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital, Xining, Qinghai, 810007, China.
Feng ZhengDepartment of Orthopedics, Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital, Xining, Qinghai, 810007, China.
Zi-An Li *Department of Laboratory, Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital, Xining, Qinghai, 810007, China. Lzanzhaoxin@126.com.
Changchun Niu *Department of Laboratory Medicine, Chongqing General Hospital, Chongqing, 40038, China. bright_star2000@sina.com.

Funding

Chongqing Special Project for Technological Innovation and Application Development CSTB2023TIAD-KPX0063-1Joint project of Chongqing Health Commission and Science and Technology Bureau No. 2024MSXM105the Health Committee Key Project in Qinghai Province 2022-wjzd-02
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimsEarly detection of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in high-altitude regions remains difficult due to physiological adaptations that may affect conventional biomarkers. This study aimed to develop machine learning-based diagnostic models tailored to high-altitude populations. MATERIALS AND

methodsThis retrospective cohort study included 19,068 individuals living in high-altitude regions (≈ 2300 m) who attended Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital between 2019 and 2022. Regression models were constructed to estimate glomerular filtration rate (GFR) as a continuous outcome, while classification models were developed to diagnose CKD based on KDIGO criteria. Artificial neural networks (ANN), LASSO regression, ridge regression, and linear regression were implemented for GFR prediction. A subgroup of 289 patients undergoing 99mTc-DTPA renal dynamic imaging served as a physiological reference for external model assessment. Classification algorithms included logistic regression, k-nearest neighbors (KNN), support vector machines (SVM), decision trees, naive Bayes, random forest (RF), and ANN. The dataset was split into training (80%) and testing (20%) cohorts using stratified sampling. Five-fold cross-validation was applied for hyperparameter tuning. Model performance was evaluated using AUC, correlation coefficients, precision, recall, and calibration metrics.

resultsIn regression models predicting GFR, ANN achieved the highest performance (AUC = 0.87), outperforming the CKD-EPI formula. In the 99mTc-DTPA subgroup, ridge regression showed the best discrimination (AUC = 0.88). In classification models, RF demonstrated superior performance (AUC = 0.92). All ML models outperformed traditional GFR equations.

conclusionMachine learning models significantly improve diagnostic accuracy of CKD in high-altitude populations. ANN and RF models demonstrated promising predictive capability, supporting their potential clinical application in high-altitude regions.

Indexed as

AltitudeMachine LearningRenal Insufficiency, ChronicBayes TheoremBiomarkersChinaClassification AlgorithmsFemaleGlomerular Filtration RateHumansMaleMiddle AgedPrediction AlgorithmsPredictive Learning ModelsRandom ForestRetrospective StudiesBiomarkersANNCKDDiagnostic modelHigh-altitudeMachine learningRF

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PMID41888709
PMCPMC13141385

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.