ALB and atherosclerosis: Increased risk of atherosclerosis in these patients is due to the overlapping of traditional risk factors of atherosclerosis with CKD-specific factors (i.e. altered calcium and phosphorus homeostasis, malnutrition, anaemia, hyperhomocysteinaemia, low serum albumin and high fibrinogen levels, as well as oxidative stress and inflammatory state) that further exacerbate atherosclerosis in the course of chronic kidney disease [9, 10].