The need to educate patients in order to enable them to participate in making appropriate choices for all therapeutic options in end stage renal disease would seem obvious yet there are many barriers to providing such information. We measured 'perceived knowledge' of the therapeutic options for end stage renal disease in a cohort of patients with chronic kidney disease in established treatment programs. A self administered questionnaire was given to 676 patients with stage 3-5 chronic kidney disease as part of the CRIOS study designed to identify trends in practice patterns and outcomes over a 4 year period. The median patient age was 66, about three-fourths were Caucasian and almost half were diabetic. When patients were asked to rate their level of knowledge, about one-third reported limited or no understanding of their chronic kidney disease and no awareness regarding their treatment options. A significant and substantial number of patients indicated they had no familiarity with transplant, hemodialysis, and continuous ambulatory or automated peritoneal dialysis. Perceived knowledge improved with the progression of kidney disease and frequency of nephrology visits; however, only about half of patients with 4 or more nephrology appointments in the prior year reported knowing of hemodialysis, continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis or transplant. Age, gender and disease had no impact on levels of patient knowledge, but African-Americans reported having significantly less understanding than Asians or Caucasians. These findings suggest that the lack of perception concerning the treatment options chronic kidney and end stage renal disease reflects, in part, problems with the education of patients by nephrologists and not a lack of referral of these patients to nephrologists for care. The discrepancy of perceived knowledge between African-Americans and other races needs special attention.

Background:The relationship between quality of life (QofL) and anemia has been the subject of recent debates; it has been suggested that the QofL changes associated with the treatment of anemia of chronic kidney disease (CKD) or ESRD patients should not be used in making decisions to treat anemia in CKD patients.Design, setting, participants, & measurements: This study examines the relationship between Kidney Disease Quality of Life (KDQofL) questionnaire domains and hemoglobin (Hgb) levels in 1200 patients with stage 3, 4, and 5 CKD followed in seven centers. QofL measures were compared in a stepwise fashion for hemoglobin levels of <11, 11 to <12, 12 to <13, and >13. ANOVA was used to examine the relationship between QofL scores and Hgb level, age, CKD stage, and albumin level; a history of diabetes, congestive heart failure, or myocardial infarction; use of erythropoetic-stimulating agents (ESA); and the interaction of hemoglobin level and ESA.Results: The results demonstrate that with increasing Hgb levels there is a statistically significant increase in all four physical domains, the energy/vitality domain, and the physical composite score of the SF-36, and the general health score on the kidney disease component of the questionnaire. The most dramatic improvements in these various domains occurred between the <11 and the 11 to 12 group.Conclusions: Higher Hgb levels are associated with improved QofL domains of the KDQofL questionnaire. These findings have implications for the care of CKD patients in terms of the initiation of and the Hgb target of ESA therapy.

Most CKD patients are considered by their medical care providers to be suitable for PD. Enhanced patient education, promotion of home dialysis for suitable patients and empowerment of patient choice are expected to augment growth of home dialysis modalities.

Remote patient management (RPM) offers renal health care providers and patients with end-stage kidney disease opportunities to embrace home dialysis therapies with greater confidence and the potential to obtain better clinical outcomes. Barriers and evidence required to increase adoption of RPM by the nephrology community need to be clearly defined. Ten health care providers from specialties including nephrology, cardiology, pediatrics, epidemiology, nursing, and health informatics with experience in home dialysis and the use of RPM systems gathered in Vienna, Austria to discuss opportunities for, barriers to, and system requirements of RPM as it applies to the home dialysis patient. Although improved outcomes and cost-effectiveness of RPM have been demonstrated in patients with diabetes mellitus and heart disease, only observational data on RPM have been gathered in patients on dialysis. The current review focused on RPM systems currently in use, on how RPM should be integrated into future care, and on the evidence needed for optimized implementation to improve clinical and economic outcomes. Randomized controlled trials and/or large observational studies could inform the most effective and economical use of RPM in home dialysis. These studies are needed to establish the value of existing and/or future RPM models among patients, policy makers, and health care providers.

The efficacy and safety of icodextrin versus glucose-only peritoneal dialysis (PD) regimens is unclear. The aim of this study was to compare once-daily long-dwell icodextrin versus glucose among patients with kidney failure undergoing PD. Study Design: Systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), enriched with unpublished data from investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored studies. Setting & Study Populations: Individuals with kidney failure receiving regular PD treatment enrolled in clinical trials of dialysate composition. Selection Criteria for Studies: Medline, Embase, CENTRAL, Ichushi Web, 10 Chinese databases, clinical trials registries, conference proceedings, and citation lists from inception to November 2018. Further data were obtained from principal investigators and industry clinical study reports. Data Extraction: 2 independent reviewers selected studies and extracted data using a prespecified extraction instrument. Analytic Approach: Qualitative synthesis of demographics, measurement scales, and outcomes. Quantitative synthesis with Mantel-Haenszel risk ratios (RRs), Peto odds ratios (ORs), or (standardized) mean differences (MDs). Risk of bias of included studies at the outcome level was assessed using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for RCTs. Results: 19 RCTs that enrolled 1,693 participants were meta-analyzed. Ultrafiltration was improved with icodextrin (medium-term MD, 208.92 [95% CI, 99.69-318.14] mL/24 h; high certainty of evidence), reflected also by fewer episodes of fluid overload (RR, 0.43 [95% CI, 0.24-0.78]; high certainty). Icodextrin-containing PD probably decreased mortality risk compared to glucose-only PD (Peto OR, 0.49 [95% CI, 0.24-1.00]; moderate certainty). Despite evidence of lower peritoneal glucose absorption with icodextrin-containing PD (medium-term MD, −40.84 [95% CI, −48.09 to −33.59] g/ long dwell; high certainty), this did not directly translate to changes in fasting plasma glucose (−0.50 [95% CI, −1.19 to 0.18] mmol/L; low certainty) and hemoglobin A 1c levels (−0.14% [95% CI, −0.34% to 0.05%]; high certainty). Safety outcomes and residual kidney function were similar in both groups; health-related quality-of-life and pain scores were inconclusive. Limitations: Trial quality was variable. The followup period was heterogeneous, with a paucity of assessments over the long term. Mortality results are based on just 32 events and were not corroborated using time-to-event analysis of individual patient data. Conclusions: Icodextrin for once-daily long-dwell PD has clinical benefit for some patients, including those not meeting ultrafiltration targets and at risk for fluid overload. Future research into patient-centered outcomes and costeffectiveness associated with icodextrin is needed. T he prevalence of kidney replacement therapy is expected to increase steeply. 1 Approximately 15% of dialysis patients globally use peritoneal dialysis (PD), and this proportion is increasing. 2 PD is probably associated with the same survival as hemodialysis (HD) 3-6 but pre...

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