Patient-reported advantages and disadvantages of peritoneal dialysis: results from the PDOPPS

Factors affecting intraperitoneal pressure (IPP) and its prognostic value in predicting leak risk and gastrointestinal symptoms in adult peritoneal dialysis patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Intraperitoneal pressure measurement offers therapeutic and prognostic benefits in predicting leak risks and gastrointestinal symptoms in Peritoneal Dialysis (PD) patients. This systematic review aims to evaluate the prognostic utility of intraperitoneal pressure measurements and different estimated intraperitoneal pressure equations in predicting the risk of non-infectious complications in PD patients.

METHODS

Databases including MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane were searched up to July 2023. Randomised and non-randomised trials were included, focusing on End-Stage Kidney Disease (ESKD) patients undergoing PD. Primary outcomes were variables associated with intraperitoneal pressure, while secondary outcomes included PD-related non-infectious complications and gastrointestinal symptoms. Data synthesis combined meta-analysis with narrative synthesis. This review has been registered on PROSPERO (CRD42023475138).

RESULTS

Out of 1828 identified studies, 12 were included for systematic review and 10 for meta-analysis. Body Mass Index (BMI) and Body Surface Area (BSA) showed a consistent positive correlation with intraperitoneal pressure (BMI: r = 0.49, 95% CI 0.35-0.61, I2 = 67.39%, p = 0.003; BSA: r = 0.2, 95% CI 0.08-0.31, I2 = 14.10%, p = 0.324). Conversely, the association between intraperitoneal pressure and age, intraperitoneal volume, and Charlson Comorbidity Index were less consistent. Subgroup analysis demonstrated an association between higher intraperitoneal pressure in patients with increased BMI and BSA. However, the relationship between intraperitoneal pressure and non-infectious mechanical complications remained inconclusive.

DISCUSSION

This review underscores a significant association between intraperitoneal pressure and anthropometric measures (BMI and BSA). The majority of the studies identified included a small sample and considerable bias. However, the association between intraperitoneal pressure and clinically relevant outcomes was not clear.

CONCLUSIONS

While increasing body mass index and body surface areas are associated with increasing intraperitoneal pressure, the clinical relevance of measuring intraperitoneal pressure in an adult population remains unclear, particularly given the absence of an association with clinically relevant non-infectious outcomes.

Characterizing Interventions Used to Promote Life Participation in Adults on Peritoneal Dialysis Therapy: A Scoping Review

Background

Living with kidney failure can interfere with life participation (ie, participation in valued life activities). Life participation has recently been identified as a top-priority health outcome of people on peritoneal dialysis therapy, but it is a relatively unexplored topic in peritoneal dialysis.

Objective

The objective is to describe the interventions that have been used to promote life participation in the peritoneal dialysis population and highlight research gaps warranting further investigation.

Design

A scoping review was conducted according to the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology.

Setting

Six electronic databases (MEDLINE [OVID], EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, CINAHL Plus, SCOPUS) were searched.

Patients

Adults aged 18+ years on peritoneal dialysis therapy.

Measurements

Any dedicated scale or subscale that measured life participation as an isolated outcome.

Methods

Title/abstract screening was completed independently after adequate inter-rater reliability (kappa > 0.8) was achieved among reviewers. Full-text review and data extraction were conducted in duplicate. Extracted data were analyzed using counts, percentages, and narrative synthesis to describe patterns in the literature.

Results

After identifying 13 874 results, 17 studies met eligibility criteria. Eight studies were conducted within the past 5 years, with China as the most common study location. Only 2 studies investigated life participation as a primary study outcome. Eight studies targeted personal-physical barriers to life participation, 8 targeted multiple barriers, and 1 targeted an environmental-institutional barrier. Life participation was assessed within a subdomain of a broader quality of life assessment (The Kidney Disease Quality of Life [KDQOL]-36 or the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey [SF-36]) in 11 studies. The majority of assessments captured life participation in all major domains of participation (self-care, work, and leisure).

Limitations

Eligibility screening at title/abstract stage was not performed in duplicate; articles not available in English were excluded.

Conclusions

Life participation has infrequently been prioritized as a health outcome in peritoneal dialysis (PD). Interventions have been narrow in focus given the range of challenges faced by people on PD and the holistic approaches used in other clinical populations. Future research should prioritize life participation as a key health outcome in PD and investigate the impact of interventions that address cognitive, affective, and environmental barriers to participation.

Selective therapeutic efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitor sorafenib on the restoration of methylglyoxal-induced peritoneal fibrosis

Peritoneal fibrosis, a common complication observed in long-term peritoneal dialysis patients, can gradually lead to ultrafiltration failure and the development of encapsulating peritoneal sclerosis. Although mechanisms of peritoneal fibrosis have been proposed, effective therapeutic options are unsatisfactory. Recently, several tyrosine kinase inhibitors have proven to be anti-fibrosis in rodent models. To assess the potential therapeutic effects of tyrosine kinase inhibitors on peritoneal fibrosis in the larger animal model, a novel porcine model of peritoneal fibrosis induced by 40 mM methylglyoxal in 2.5 % dialysate was established, and two different doses (20 mg/kg and 30 mg/kg) of sorafenib were given orally to evaluate their therapeutic efficacy in this study. Our results showed that sorafenib effectively reduced adhesions between peritoneal organs and significantly diminished the thickening of both the parietal and visceral peritoneum. Angiogenesis, vascular endothelial growth factor A production, myofibroblast infiltration, and decreased endothelial glycocalyx resulting from dialysate and methylglyoxal stimulations were also alleviated with sorafenib. However, therapeutic efficacy in ameliorating loss of mesothelial cells, restoring decreased ultrafiltration volume, and improving elevated small solutes transport rates was limited. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that sorafenib could potentially be used for peritoneal fibrosis treatment, but applying sorafenib alone might not be sufficient to fully rescue methylglyoxal-induced peritoneal defects.

Delivering Person-Centered Peritoneal Dialysis

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) enables people to have a home-based therapy, permitting greater autonomy for individuals along with enhanced treatment satisfaction compared with in-center dialysis care. The burden of treatment on PD, however, remains considerable and underpins the need for person-centered care. This reflects the need to address the patient as a person with needs and preferences beyond just the medical perspective. Shared decision making is central to the recent International Society for Peritoneal Dialysis recommendations for prescribing PD, balancing the potential benefits of PD on patient well-being with the burden associated with treatment. This review considers the role of high-quality goal-directed prescribing, incremental dialysis, and remote patient monitoring in reducing the burden of dialysis, including an approach to implementing incremental PD. Although patient-related outcomes are important in assessing the response to treatment and, particularly life participation, the corollary of dialysis burden, there are no clear routes to the clinical implementation of patient-related outcome measures. Delivering person-centered care is dependent on treating people both as individuals and as equal partners in their care.

The Burden of Home Dialysis: An Overlooked Challenge

Home dialysis offers several clinical and quality-of-life benefits for patients with kidney failure. However, it is important to recognize that home dialysis may place an increased burden on patients and their care partners. Sources of burden may include concerns about the ability to adequately and safely perform dialysis at home, physical symptoms, impairment of life participation, psychosocial challenges, and care partner burnout. Overlooking or failing to address these issues may lead to adverse events that negatively affect health and quality of life and reduce longevity of home dialysis. This study will explore aspects of home dialysis associated with burden, emphasize the need for increased awareness of potential challenges, and elaborate on strategies to overcome sources of burden. Future research should actively involve patients and care partners to better understand their motivation, experiences, and needs to better inform support strategies.

Matrix metalloproteinase-10 deficiency has protective effects against peritoneal inflammation and fibrosis via transcription factor NFκΒ pathway inhibition

One of the most common causes of discontinued peritoneal dialysis is impaired peritoneal function. However, its molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Previously, by microarray analysis of mouse peritoneum, we showed that MMP (matrix metalloproteinase)-10 expression is significantly increased in mice with peritoneal fibrosis, but its function remains unknown. Chlorhexidine gluconate (CG) was intraperitoneally injected to wild-type and MMP-10 knockout mice to induce fibrosis to elucidate the role of MMP-10 on peritoneal injury. We also examined function of peritoneal macrophages and mesothelial cells obtained from wild-type and MMP-10 knockout mice, MMP-10-overexpressing macrophage-like RAW 264.7 cells and MeT-5A mesothelial cells, investigated MMP-10 expression on peritoneal biopsy specimens, and the association between serum proMMP-10 and peritoneal solute transfer rates determined by peritoneal equilibration test on patients. MMP-10 was expressed in cells positive for WT1, a mesothelial marker, and for MAC-2, a macrophage marker, in the thickened peritoneum of both mice and patients. Serum proMMP-10 levels were well correlated with peritoneal solute transfer rates. Peritoneal fibrosis, inflammation, and high peritoneal solute transfer rates induced by CG were all ameliorated by MMP-10 deletion, with reduction of CD31-positive vessels and VEGF-A-positive cells. Expression of inflammatory mediators and phosphorylation of NFκΒ subunit p65 at S536 were suppressed in both MMP-10 knockout macrophages and mesothelial cells in response to lipopolysaccharide stimulation. Overexpression of MMP-10 in RAW 264.7 and MeT-5A cells upregulated pro-inflammatory cytokines with phosphorylation of NFκΒ subunit p65. Thus, our results suggest that inflammatory responses induced by MMP-10 are mediated through the NFκΒ pathway, and that systemic deletion of MMP-10 ameliorates peritoneal inflammation and fibrosis caused by NFκΒ activation of peritoneal macrophages and mesothelial cells.

Epidemiology of peritoneal dialysis outcomes

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is an important home-based treatment for kidney failure and accounts for 11% of all dialysis and 9% of all kidney replacement therapy globally. Although PD is available in 81% of countries, this provision ranges from 96% in high-income countries to 32% in low-income countries. Compared with haemodialysis, PD has numerous potential advantages, including a simpler technique, greater feasibility of use in remote communities, generally lower cost, lesser need for trained staff, fewer management challenges during natural disasters, possibly better survival in the first few years, greater ability to travel, fewer dietary restrictions, better preservation of residual kidney function, greater treatment satisfaction, better quality of life, better outcomes following subsequent kidney transplantation, delayed need for vascular access (especially in small children), reduced need for erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, and lower risk of blood-borne virus infections and of SARS-CoV-2 infection. PD outcomes have been improving over time but with great variability, driven by individual and system-level inequities and by centre effects; this variation is exacerbated by a lack of standardized outcome definitions. Potential strategies for outcome improvement include enhanced standardization, monitoring and reporting of PD outcomes, and the implementation of continuous quality improvement programmes and of PD-specific interventions, such as incremental PD, the use of biocompatible PD solutions and remote PD monitoring.

The use of peritoneal dialysis (PD) can be advantageous compared with haemodialysis treatment, although several barriers limit its broad implementation. This review examines the epidemiology of peritoneal dialysis (PD) outcomes, including clinical, patient-reported and surrogate PD outcomes.

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) has distinct advantages compared with haemodialysis, including the convenience of home treatment, improved quality of life, technical simplicity, lesser need for trained staff, greater cost-effectiveness in most countries, improved equity of access to dialysis in resource-limited settings, and improved survival, particularly in the first few years of initiating therapy.

Important barriers can hamper PD utilization in low-income settings, including the high costs of PD fluids (owing to the inability to manufacture them locally and the exorbitant costs of their import), limited workforce availability and a practice culture that limits optimal PD use, often leading to suboptimal outcomes.

PD outcomes are highly variable around the world owing in part to the use of variable outcome definitions, a heterogeneous practice culture, the lack of standardized monitoring and reporting of quality indicators, and kidney failure care gaps (including health care workforce shortages, inadequate health care financing, suboptimal governance and a lack of good health care information systems).

Key outcomes include not only clinical outcomes (typically defined as medical outcomes based on clinician assessment or diagnosis) — for example, PD-related infections, technique survival, mechanical complications, hospitalizations and PD-related mortality — but also patient-reported outcomes. These outcomes are directly reported by patients and focus on how they function or feel, typically in relation to quality of life or symptoms; patient-reported outcomes are used less frequently than clinical outcomes in day-to-day routine care.

Fatigue in incident peritoneal dialysis and mortality: A real-world side-by-side study in Brazil and the United States

Background

We tested if fatigue in incident Peritoneal Dialysis associated with an increased risk for mortality, independently from main confounders.

Methods

We conducted a side-by-side study from two of incident PD patients in Brazil and the United States. We used the same code to independently analyze data in both countries during 2004 to 2011. We included data from adults who completed KDQOL-SF vitality subscale within 90 days after starting PD. Vitality score was categorized in four groups: >50 (high vitality), ≥40 to ≤50 (moderate vitality), >35 to <40 (moderate fatigue), ≤35 (high fatigue; reference group). In each country’s cohort, we built four distinct models to estimate the associations between vitality (exposure) and all-cause mortality (outcome): (i) Cox regression model; (ii) competing risk model accounting for technique failure events; (iii) multilevel survival model of clinic-level clusters; (iv) multivariate regression model with smoothing splines treating vitality as a continuous measure. Analyses were adjusted for age, comorbidities, PD modality, hemoglobin, and albumin. A mixed-effects meta-analysis was used to pool hazard ratios (HRs) from both cohorts to model mortality risk for each 10-unit increase in vitality.

Results

We used data from 4,285 PD patients (Brazil n = 1,388 and United States n = 2,897). Model estimates showed lower vitality levels within 90 days of starting PD were associated with a higher risk of mortality, which was consistent in Brazil and the United States cohorts. In the multivariate survival model, each 10-unit increase in vitality score was associated with lower risk of all-cause mortality in both cohorts (Brazil HR = 0.79 [95%CI 0.70 to 0.90] and United States HR = 0.90 [95%CI 0.88 to 0.93], pooled HR = 0.86 [95%CI 0.75 to 0.98]). Results for all models provided consistent effect estimates.

Conclusions

Among patients in Brazil and the United States, lower vitality score in the initial months of PD was independently associated with all-cause mortality.

Increasing trends in hemodialysis and living donor kidney transplantation for children and young people in the United Kingdom

BACKGROUND

The UK Renal Registry is responsible for the national collection and reporting of data on all children receiving long-term kidney replacement therapy [KRT], including kidney transplantation.

METHODS

All 13 UK pediatric nephrology centers contributed to providing individual patient data from the pediatric population incident to and prevalent to KRT as per the date 31 December 2018. Data for children aged 16-<18 years were presented separately as some were managed under adult care settings with different methods of data collection. Demographics and biochemical data, including kidney function and prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors [hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, BMI] were reported.

RESULTS

Eight hundred and twenty-six children (65.4 per million age-related population [pmarp]) and 199 young people (139.4pmarp) in the United Kingdom were prevalent to KRT on 31 December 2018. Overall, the incidence of KRT during 2018 was 9.1 pmarp and 12.6 pmarp in children and young people, respectively. Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) were the most prevalent primary diagnoses (52%). Living and deceased donor transplantation was the most common treatment modality (78%). Patients on dialysis had lower age standardized mean height and weight ranges recorded in comparison to transplant patients [median height z score -1.8 vs. -1.1]. 73.1% patients had one or more cardiovascular disease risk factors.

CONCLUSIONS

This study highlights increasing prevalence of hemodialysis and living donor transplantation as modalities for KRT. Of those incident to KRT, the highest patient survival was seen among 8-12 years and lowest <2 years. Moreover, there was a demographic shift from Caucasian toward Asian/other ethnicity and from CAKUT to other primary kidney diseases.

Proteomics and Extracellular Vesicles as Novel Biomarker Sources in Peritoneal Dialysis in Children

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) represents the dialysis modality of choice for pediatric patients with end-stage kidney disease. Indeed, compared with hemodialysis (HD), it offers many advantages, including more flexibility, reduction of the risk of hospital-acquired infections, preservation of residual kidney function, and a better quality of life. However, despite these positive aspects, PD may be associated with several long-term complications that may impair both patient's general health and PD adequacy. In this view, chronic inflammation, caused by different factors, has a detrimental impact on the structure and function of the peritoneal membrane, leading to sclerosis and consequent PD failure both in adults and children. Although several studies investigated the complex pathogenic pathways underlying peritoneal membrane alterations, these processes remain still to explore. Understanding these mechanisms may provide novel approaches to improve the clinical outcome of pediatric PD patients through the identification of subjects at high risk of complications and the implementation of personalized interventions. In this review, we discuss the main experimental and clinical experiences exploring the potentiality of the proteomic analysis of peritoneal fluids and extracellular vesicles as a source of novel biomarkers in pediatric peritoneal dialysis.

The case for Increased Peritoneal Dialysis Utilization in Low- and Lower-Middle-Income Countries

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) has several advantages compared to hemodialysis (HD), but there is evidence showing underutilization globally, especially in low-income and lower-middle-income countries (LLMICs) where kidney replacement therapies (KRT) are often unavailable, inaccessible, and unaffordable. Only 11% of all dialysis patients worldwide use PD, more than 50% of whom live in China, the United States of America, Mexico, or Thailand. Various barriers to increased PD utilization have been reported worldwide including patient preference, low levels of education, and lower provider reimbursement. However, unique but surmountable barriers are applicable to LLMICs including the excessively high cost of providing PD (related to PD fluids in particular), excessive cost of treatment borne by patients (relative to HD), lack of adequate PD training opportunities for doctors and nurses, low workforce availability for kidney care, and challenges related to some PD outcomes (catheter-related infections, hospitalizations, mortality, etc.). This review discusses some known barriers to PD use in LLMICs and leverages data that show a global trend in reducing rates of PD-related infections, reducing rates of modality switches from HD, and improving patient survival in PD to discuss how PD use can be increased in LLMICs. We therefore, challenge the idea that low PD use in LLMICs is unavoidable due to these barriers and instead present opportunities to improve PD utilization in LLMICs.

Kidney Supportive Care in Peritoneal Dialysis: Developing a Person-Centered Kidney Disease Care Plan

Individuals receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD)—similar to those receiving hemodialysis —may experience high mortality coupled with a high symptom burden and reduced health-related quality of life. In this context, a discussion of the risks, benefits, and tradeoffs of PD and/or other kidney treatment modalities should be explored based on individual goals and preferences. Through these principles, kidney supportive care provides a person-centered approach to kidney disease care throughout the spectrum of kidney failure and earlier stages of chronic kidney disease. Kidney supportive care is offered in conjunction with life-prolonging therapies, including dialysis and kidney transplants, and is increasingly recognized as an integral part of advancing the care of PD patients. Using “My Kidney Care Roadmap” for shared decision making, kidney supportive care guides patients undergoing PD and their clinicians to (1) elicit patient goals, values, and priorities; (2) convey medical prognosis and suitable treatment options; and (3) ask “Which of these kidney treatment options will best help me achieve my goals and priorities?” to inform both current and future decisions, including choice of dialysis modalities, time-limited trials, and/or nondialysis management. Recognizing that patient priorities and choices may evolve, this framework ultimately allows patients to continually reassess their PD care to better achieve goal-directed dialysis.

A Cross-sectional Study of Fixed and Growth Mindset in Adult Peritoneal Dialysis Patients

Increasing home dialysis prevalence is an international priority. Many patients start peritoneal dialysis, then transition to hemodialysis after complications. New strategies are needed to support modality persistence. Health mindset refers to individual belief about capacity to change to improve health. Mindset was measured in a cross-section of 101 adult peritoneal dialysis patients from April 2019 to June 2020. The Health Mindset Scale was administered to characterize the continuum of fixed vs. growth mindset with respect to health. Health literacy and health self-efficacy were also assessed. Participants were 43% female, 32% African American, and 42% diabetic. Health mindset scores were skewed toward growth (range 3-18), with average (SD) 12.83 (4.2). Growth mindset was strongly associated with health self-efficacy. Adults receiving peritoneal dialysis report health mindset variation. Growth mindset and health self-efficacy correlation suggests measurement of similar constructs, demonstrating convergent validity. The Health Mindset Scale may identify individuals who could benefit from targeted interventions to improve mindset, and foster peritoneal dialysis modality persistence.

Representativeness of the PDOPPS cohort compared to the Australian PD population

BACKGROUND

The Peritoneal Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (PDOPPS) is an international, prospective study following persons treated by peritoneal dialysis (PD) to identify modifiable practices associated with improvements in PD technique and person survival. The aim of this study was to assess the representativeness of the Australian cohort included in PDOPPS compared to the complete Australian PD population, as reported to the Australia and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant (ANZDATA) Registry.

METHODS

Adults with at least one PD treatment reported to ANZDATA Registry during the census period of PDOPPS Phase I (November 2014 to April 2018) were compared to the Australian PDOPPS cohort. The primary outcomes were the representativeness of centres and persons. Secondary outcomes explored the association of person characteristics with consent to study participation.

RESULTS

After data linkage, 511 PDOPPS participants were compared to 5616 Australians treated with PD. Within centres eligible for PDOPPS, selected centres were similar to other Australian centres. The PDOPPS participants' cohort tended to include older persons, more males, a higher proportion of Caucasians and more persons with higher socioeconomic advantage compared to the Australian PD population. Differences in distribution across sex and ethnicities between the PDOPPS cohort and the overall PD population were in part due to the selection and consent processes, during which females and non-Caucasians were more likely to not consent to PDOPPS participation.

CONCLUSION

Sampling methods used in PDOPPS allowed for good national representativeness of the included centres. However, representativeness of the unweighted PDOPPS sample was suboptimal in regard to some participant characteristics.

Automated Peritoneal Dialysis: Patient Perspectives and Outcomes

A steadily increasing number of end stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients are maintained on automated peritoneal dialysis (APD) worldwide, in long-standing as well as in more recently established peritoneal dialysis (PD) programs. A better understanding of the technique, paralleled by progress in involved technology, sustained this growth to the point that APD has become the prevalent mode of PD delivery in most high-income countries. While APD is now regarded to be at least as efficient as continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) with regard to major biomedical outcomes, its impact on patient-reported outcomes has been less investigated. This paper reviews the main outcomes of APD from a clinical point of view and from the person on dialysis perspective.

The use of implicit persuasion in decision-making about treatment for end-stage kidney disease

BACKGROUND

There are various options for managing end-stage kidney disease. Each option impacts the lives of patients differently. When weighing the pros and cons of the different options, patients' values, needs and preferences should, therefore, be taken into account. However, despite the best intentions, nephrologists may, more or less deliberately, convey a treatment preference and thereby steer the decision-making process. Being aware of such implicit persuasion could help to further optimise shared decision-making (SDM). This study explores verbal acts of implicit persuasion during outpatient consultations scheduled to make a final treatment decision. These consultations mark the end of a multi-consultation, educational process and summarise treatment aspects discussed previously.

METHODS

Observations of video-recorded outpatient consultations in nephrology (n = 20) were used to capture different forms of implicit persuasion. To this purpose, a coding scheme was developed.

RESULTS

In nearly every consultation nephrologists used some form of implicit persuasion. Frequently observed behaviours included selectively presenting treatment options, benefits and harms, and giving the impression that undergoing or foregoing treatment is unusual. The extent to which nephrologists used these behaviours differed.

CONCLUSION

The use of implicit persuasion while discussing different kidney replacement modalities appears diverse and quite common. Nephrologists should be made aware of these behaviours as implicit persuasion might prevent patients to become knowledgeable in each treatment option, thereby affecting SDM and causing decisional regret. The developed coding scheme for observing implicit persuasion elicits useful and clinically relevant examples which could be used when providing feedback to nephrologists.

Effect of social deprivation on peritoneal dialysis uptake: A mediation analysis with the data of the REIN registry

BACKGROUND

Social deprivation could act as a barrier to peritoneal dialysis (PD). The objective of this study was to assess the association between social deprivation estimated by the European deprivation index (EDI) and PD uptake and to explore the potential mediators of this association.

METHODS

From the Renal Epidemiology and Information Network registry, patients who started dialysis in 2017 were included. The EDI was calculated based on the patient's address. The event of interest was the proportion of PD 3 months after dialysis initiation. A mediation analysis with a counterfactual approach was carried out to evaluate the direct and indirect effect of the EDI on the proportion of PD.

RESULTS

Among the 9588 patients included, 1116 patients were on PD; 2894 (30.2%) patients belonged to the most deprived quintile (Q5). PD was associated with age >70 years (odds ratio (OR) 0.79 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.69-0.91]), male gender (0.85 [95% CI: 0.74-0.97]), cardiovascular disease (OR 0.86 [95% CI: 0.86-1.00]), chronic heart failure (OR 1.34 [95% CI: 1.13-1.58]), active cancer (OR 0.67 [95% CI: 0.53-0.85]) and obesity (OR 0.75 [95% CI: 0.63-0.89]). In the mediation analysis, Q5 had a direct effect on PD proportion OR 0.84 [95% CI: 0.73-0.96]. The effect of Q5 on the proportion of PD was mediated by haemoglobin level at dialysis initiation (OR 0.96 [95% CI: 0.94-0.98]) and emergency start (OR 0.98 [95% CI: 0.96-0.99]).

CONCLUSION

Social deprivation, estimated by the EDI, was associated with a lower PD uptake. The effect of social deprivation was mediated by haemoglobin level, a proxy of predialysis care and emergency start.

Vascular endothelial growth factor-mediated peritoneal neoangiogenesis in peritoneal dialysis

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is an important renal replacement therapy for patients with end-stage renal diseases, which is limited by peritoneal neoangiogenesis leading to ultrafiltration failure (UFF). Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and its receptors are key angiogenic factors involved in almost every step of peritoneal neoangiogenesis. Impaired mesothelial cells are the major sources of VEGF in the peritoneum. The expression of VEGF will be up-regulated in specific pathological conditions in PD patients, such as with non-biocompatible peritoneal dialysate, uremia and inflammation, and so on. Other working cells (i.e. vascular endothelial cells, macrophages and adipocytes) can also stimulate the secretion of VEGF. Meanwhile, hypoxia and activation of complement system further aggravate peritoneal injury and contribute to neoangiogenesis. There are several signalling pathways participating in VEGF-mediated peritoneal neoangiogenesis including tumour growth factor-β, Wnt/β-catenin, Notch and interleukin-6/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3. Moreover, VEGF is highly expressed in dialysate effluent of long-term PD patients and is associated with peritoneal transport function, which supports its role in the alteration of peritoneal structure and function. In this review, we systematically summarize the angiogenic effect of VEGF and evaluate it as a potential target for the prevention of peritoneal neoangiogenesis and UFF. Preservation of the peritoneal membrane using targeted therapy of VEGF-mediated peritoneal neoangiogenesis may increase the longevity of the PD modality for those who require life-long dialysis.

Anemia management for home dialysis including the new US public policy initiative

Patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) requiring kidney replacement therapy are often treated in conventional dialysis centers at substantial cost and patient inconvenience. The recent United States Executive Order on Advancing American Kidney Health, in addition to focusing on ESKD prevention and reforming the kidney transplantation system, focuses on providing financial incentives to promote a shift toward home dialysis. In accordance with this order, a goal was set to have 80% of incident dialysis patients receiving home dialysis or a kidney transplant by 2025. Compared with conventional in-center therapy, home dialysis modalities, including both home hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis, appear to offer equivalent or improved mortality, clinical outcomes, hospitalization rates, and quality of life in patients with ESKD in addition to greater convenience, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness. Treatment of anemia, a common complication of chronic kidney disease, may be easier to manage at home with a new class of agents, hypoxia-inducible factor-prolyl hydroxylase inhibitors, which are orally administered in contrast to the current standard of care of i.v. iron and/or erythropoiesis-stimulating agents. This review evaluates the clinical, quality-of-life, economic, and social aspects of dialysis modalities in patients with ESKD, including during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic; explores new therapeutics for the management of anemia in chronic kidney disease; and highlights how the proposed changes in Advancing American Kidney Health provide an opportunity to improve kidney health in the United States.

The role of personal attitudes of control and responsibility for the uptake of peritoneal dialysis- a national survey among dialysis patients

BACKGROUND

Although most patients are suitable for both hemodialysis (HD) and peritoneal dialysis (PD), there seem to be differences in the outlook of patients who choose one modality over the other. There is currently limited literature about the impact of patients' personal attitudes on the decision for PD or HD. In this study, we tried to find out whether there were differences between patients who were on HD and PD in their desire for control and responsibility for their treatment.

METHODS

The data were drawn from a nationwide postal survey of 630 HD and PD patients. Patients' desire for control was measured by scores on the internal locus of control (ILOC) scale. Patients were also asked how important taking responsibility for their dialysis had been for their treatment decision (ITR). Two multivariate logistic regression models, both adjusted for age, were applied to investigate whether there were differences between HD and PD patients in ILOC and ITR. Having one generic measure (ILOC) and one tailored to the dialysis context (ITR) gave the opportunity to investigate if it is a generic personality trait or rather a specific attitude that affects choice of dialysis modality.

RESULTS

PD patients were younger and showed higher ILOC and ITR values. Multivariate logistic regression models adjusted for age confirmed the significant influence of ILOC and ITR on the uptake of PD. The odds ratios for being in the PD group were 1.53 for ILOC (p = 0.030; 95% CI 1.04-2.25), 1.49 for ITR (p = 0.019; 95% CI 1.07-2.07), and 0.95 (p = 0.000; 95% CI 0.94-0.97) for age in both models.

CONCLUSIONS

Our analysis shows the impact of personal attitudes on the uptake of PD. Participants who generally want to keep control of their lives and take responsibility for their dialysis treatment tended to choose PD. As PD is a home dialysis treatment that requires patients to participate and contribute, it is beneficial if patients' personalities support the treatment procedure. Having two completely different treatment options that suit to different personalities gives us the opportunity to consider the relationship between personal attitudes and choice of dialysis modality.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

The MAU-PD study is registered at the German Clinical Trials Register.

DRKS-ID

DRKS00012555 . Date of Registration in DRKS: 2018/01/04.

Urinary Liver-Type Fatty Acid-Binding Protein Predicts Residual Renal Function Decline in Patients on Peritoneal Dialysis

Background

Liver-type fatty acid-binding protein (L-FABP) is a predictive marker for the early detection of acute kidney injury; however, less is known about how useful it is for predicting residual renal function (RRF) decline in patients on peritoneal dialysis (PD).

Material/Methods

The study subjects were 35 patients on PD who underwent multiple peritoneal equilibration tests (PETs) between October 2011 and October 2019. Urinary L-FABP levels were analyzed with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The relationship between baseline clinical data, including urinary L-FABP levels and the subsequent annual rate of renal Kt/V decline, was investigated.

Results

The median follow-up duration was 11 months and the rate of renal Kt/V decline was 0.29/y. Compared with outcomes in the group with renal Kt/V preservation, renal Kt/V decline was associated with both high daily levels of urinary protein excretion (0.60 g/d [range, 0.50–0.87] vs. 0.36 g/d [range, 0.19–0.48]; P=0.01) and high daily levels of urinary L-FABP excretion (111.2 mg/d [range, 76.1–188.6] vs. 61.5 mg/d [range, 35.7–96.0]; P=0.002). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that only high daily levels of urinary L-FABP excretion were independently associated with renal Kt/V decline (odds ratio 1.03, 95% confidence interval 1.00–1.05; P=0.001). Furthermore, higher daily levels of urinary L-FABP excretion were significantly correlated with the higher annual rate of renal Kt/V decline (r=0.71, P<0.001).

Conclusions

We demonstrated that daily levels of urinary L-FABP are associated with RRF decline in patients on PD. The results of the present study indicate that assessment of urinary L-FABP levels may help predict RRF decline in patients on PD.