Lin-Tan DT, Lin JL, Yen TH, Chen KH, Huang YL
This study extended the kidney disease research further, following 116 patients with non-diabetic chronic kidney disease over a four-year clinical trial. Patients were randomized to receive EDTA chelation or placebo, with treatment administered for three months initially and then repeated as needed based on lead mobilization testing. Kidney function was tracked throughout using serum creatinine as the primary marker.
Over four years, EDTA chelation therapy significantly slowed progression of kidney disease even in patients with normal blood lead levels at baseline. This builds on the NEJM finding above, confirming the effect over a longer timeframe and reinforcing that subclinical lead accumulation — not just overt poisoning — is clinically significant.
Bottom line — Repeated EDTA chelation slowed kidney disease progression in non-diabetic CKD patients over four years, even in patients whose blood lead levels were within the normal range at baseline. The findings reinforce that subclinical lead burden — not just overt poisoning — is clinically meaningful, and that addressing it can measurably affect long-term outcomes.