Abstract: Ｏｂｊｅｃｔｉｖｅ：To investigate the relationship between serum β-catenin level and abdominal aortic calcification （AAC） in maintenance hemodialysis （MHD） patients.
Ｍｅｔｈｏｄｏｌｏｇｙ：A total of 70 MHD patients in our hospital were selected and AAC was detected using lateral abdominal plain film. According to the CORD grouping method， the patients were divided into three groups: no or mild calcification group， moderate calcification group and severe calcification group. Serum β-catenin level was detected by ELISA， and the relationship between serum β-catenin level and AAC score （AACS）， demographic characteristics and biochemical indexes of MHD patients was observed.
Ｒｅｓｕｌｔｓ：The incidence of AAC in MHD patients was 70%. The serum β-catenin level of severe abdominal aortic calcification group was significantly higher than that of moderate， no or mild calcification group， and the difference was statistically significant （P<0.05）. The serum β-catenin level in moderate calcification group was also higher than that in no or mild calcification group （P<0.05）. Correlation analysis showed that serum β-catenin level was positively correlated with AACS， dialysis age， parathyroid hormone and blood phosphorus in MHD patients. Logistic regression analysis showed that the increase of β-catenin level， high body mass index and high CRP level were independent risk factors for AAC in MHD patients （P<0.05）， while the increase of serum albumin level was a protective factor （P<0.05）. The area under the curve （AUC） of serum β-catenin predicted AAC was 0.864 （95%CI 0.766～0.961， P=0.000）， the Yoden index was 0.693， corresponding to the serum β-catenin level was 211.63pg／ml， the sensitivity of AAC prediction was 91.70%， the specificity was 77.60%.
Ｃｏｎｃｌｕｓｉｏｎ：The increase of serum β-catenin in MHD patients may be related to AAC.

Key words: maintenance hemodialysis, β-catenin, abdominal aorta calcified