The 2006 National Kidney Foundation K/DOQI guidelines have lowered the peritoneal dialysis adequacy standard of Kt/V(urea) from 2.1 to 1.7 in anuric patients, largely based on the patient survival results of 2 clinical trials in Mexico and Hong Kong. It is our contention that the guidelines may be misleading since they have chosen to ignore the bias in these trials and have ignored the adverse outcomes in control groups in the trials on which the guidelines are based, as well as the body size of the subjects in these trials. Body size has changed in the US and Canada over the last few decades and there are similar changes worldwide. We suggest that the minimum targets for peritoneal dialysis be reinstituted at the previous standard Kt/V(urea) of 2.0.
Peripheral arterial disease and vascular calcifications contribute significantly to the outcome of dialysis patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic role of severity of abdominal aortic calcifications and peripheral arterial disease on outcome of peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients using methods easily available in everyday clinical practice.
We enrolled 249 PD patients (mean age 61 years, 67% male) in this prospective, observational, multicenter study from 2009 to 2013. The abdominal aortic calcification score (AACS) was assessed using lateral lumbar X ray, and the ankle-brachial index (ABI) using a Doppler device.
The median AACS was 11 (range 0 - 24). In 58% of the patients, all 4 segments of the abdominal aorta showed deposits, while 19% of patients had no visible deposits (AACS 0). Ankle-brachial index was normal in 49%, low ( 1.3) in 34% of patients. Altogether 91 patients (37%) died during the median follow-up of 46 months. Only 2 patients (5%) with AACS 0 died compared with 50% of the patients with AACS = 7 (p
Prevention in nephrology is only possible with the cooperation of patients and their families. The nurse plays a considerable role in working with patients and is a major player in the team, responsible for follow-up of the patient, where the earliest interventions can help delay and sometimes avoid dialysis. The hypertension clinic is the beginning of a continuum until dialysis. This paper describes three clinics that are managed in the renal service and indicates how they contribute to offering optimal care to a renal population.
137 patients were actively treated because of chronic uremia, during 1966 to 1977 in the city of Göteborg. One year patient survival increased from 51% (1966 to 1968) to 81% (1975 to 1977). Peritoneal dialysis decreased as the initial mode of treatment, and only 3% of the patients started dialysis treatment with this mode of therapy in the last 3-year period. Mean age of the actively treated patients was 44 years. A decreasing mean age of the actively treated patients was found towards the end of the period, reflecting more liberal criteria for accepting young patients with different systemic diseases. If the initial mode of treatment was dialysis, 1-year patient survival in the last 3-year period was 77%.
We studied 275 renal replacement therapy (RRT) patients in a Danish county (population 329,000) from January 1st 1979 to June 30th 1994. Incidence, prevalence and age of new patients increased. The fraction of patients with diabetic nephropathy also increased. Patient survival remained constant (five-year survival 62% for patients observed for more than 90 days). The total number of new patients entering haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis seemed to be reaching a constant level, that could be calculated using a logistic function. The fraction of patients leaving therapy remained constant over the years and was higher for peritoneal dialysis than for haemodialysis (32 vs. 20% per year). The future prevalence can be estimated by combining these two last findings.
Accurate prediction of survival for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and multiple comorbid conditions is difficult. In nondialysis patients, the Charlson Comorbidity Index has been used to adjust for comorbidity. The purpose of this study is to assess the validity of the Charlson index in incident dialysis patients and modify the index for use specifically in this patient population.
Subjects included all incident hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis patients starting dialysis therapy between July 1, 1999, and November 30, 2000. These 237 patients formed a cohort from which new integer weights for Charlson comorbidities were derived using Cox proportional hazards modeling. Performance of the original Charlson index and the new ESRD comorbidity index were compared using Kaplan-Meier survival curves, change in likelihood ratio, and the c statistic.
After multivariate analysis and conversion of hazard ratios to index weights, only 6 of the original 18 Charlson variables were assigned the same weight and 6 variables were assigned a weight higher than in the original Charlson index. Using Kaplan-Meier survival curves, we found that both the original Charlson index and the new ESRD comorbidity index were associated with and able to describe a wide range of survival. However, the new study-specific index had better validated performance, indicated by a greater change in the likelihood ratio test and higher c statistic.
This study indicates that the original Charlson index is a valid tool to assess comorbidity and predict survival in patients with ESRD. However, our modified ESRD comorbidity index had slightly better performance characteristics in this population.
The Aboriginal population in Canada experiences high rates of end-stage renal disease and need for dialytic therapies. Our objective was to examine rates of mortality, technique failure and peritonitis among adult aboriginal patients receiving peritoneal dialysis in the province of Manitoba. We also aimed to explore whether differences in these rates may be accounted for by location of residence (i.e., urban versus rural).
We included all adult patients residing in the province of Manitoba who received peritoneal dialysis during the period from 1997-2007 (n = 727). We extracted data from a local administrative database and from the Canadian Organ Replacement Registry and the Peritonitis Organism Exit-sites/Tunnel infections (POET) database. We used Cox and logistic regression models to determine the relationship between outcomes and Aboriginal ethnicity. We performed Kaplan-Meier analyses to examine the relationship between outcomes and urban (i.e., 50 km or less from the primary dialysis centre in Winnipeg) versus rural (i.e., more than 50 km from the centre) residency among patients who were aboriginal.
One hundred sixty-one Aboriginal and 566 non-Aboriginal patients were included in the analyses. Adjusted hazard ratios for mortality (HR 1.476, CI 1.073-2.030) and adjusted time to peritonitis (HR 1.785, CI 1.352-2.357) were significantly higher among Aboriginal patients than among non-Aboriginal patients. We found no significant differences in mortality, technique failure or peritonitis between urban- or rural-residing Aboriginal patients.
Compared with non-Aboriginal patients receiving peritoneal dialysis, Aboriginal patients receiving peritoneal dialysis had higher mortality and faster time to peritonitis independent of comorbidities and demographic characteristics. This effect was not influenced by place of residence, whether rural or urban.
Notes
Cites: Am J Public Health. 2003 May;93(5):798-80212721147
Cites: Kidney Int. 2009 Sep;76(6):622-819516241
Cites: J Am Soc Nephrol. 2003 Jul;14(7 Suppl 2):S139-4312819319
