Patients with chronic renal failure are frequently characterized by malnutrition, hyperleptinaemia and metabolic acidosis. Both hyperleptinaemia and chronic metabolic acidosis are presumed to contribute to the pathogenesis of malnutrition observed in this group of patients. It has been reported, that in vitro adipocytes exposed to acidotic medium decrease leptin secretion. The aim of present study was to analyze the possible impact of uraemic metabolic acidosis on leptinaemia in haemodialysis patients with chronic renal failure. - 94 haemodialysed patients (58 M, 36 F; mean age 45 +/- 1 years) were enrolled in this study. 56 patients were on haemodialysis treatment for one year using an acetate dialysis fluid, while 38 patients were haemodialysed at least for 3 months with a dialysate buffered with bicarbonate. Plasma leptin concentration, blood gases and body composition were assessed in all examined subjects. - Patients haemodialysed with an acetate and bicarbonate buffered dialysate did not differ with respect to body weight, body mass index (BMI), total fat mass (TFM) and plasma leptin concentration. Patients haemodialysed with an acetate buffered dialysate were characterized by a significantly more severe metabolic acidosis than patients on bicarbonate haemodialysis. Patients were divided according to the actual hydrogen ion concentration: over 60 nmol/l, 45-60 nmol/l and below 45 nmol/l. These subgroups did not differ significantly by body weight, BMI and TFM. Only a slightly (not significantly), lower median leptinaemia was found in patients with elevated hydrogen ion concentration. No significant correlation was noticed between blood hydrogen or hydrocarbonate ion concentration respectively and logarithmic values of plasma leptin concentration (tau = 0.025, p = 0.72; tau = - 0.021, p = 0.76 respectively). - From results obtained in this study we may conclude that, blood hydrogen ion concentration does not influence substantially or only moderately to plasma leptin concentration in haemodialysed patients.