The following is a summary of “Trends in Automated Peritoneal Dialysis Prescriptions in a Large Dialysis Organization in the United States,” published in the February 2024 issue of Nephrology by Giles et al.
Recently, there has been a surge in home-based dialysis, especially peritoneal dialysis (PD), thanks to changes in healthcare policies and their benefits among patients. For a top-class PD, it is essential to frequently monitor and tweak prescriptions early in patients.
Researchers conducted a retrospective study to evaluate PD prescription varies among patients with automated PD (APD) who continue PD for 120+ days.
They analyzed data from a large dialysis organization that initiated PD with APD between 2015 and 2019. PD prescription data were described using calendar year, timing of PD, and residual renal function categories. Changes in prescription from day 1 to day 120 were assessed descriptively.
The result showed 11,659 patients with a mean age of 56 ±15 in 2015, at the start of PD, which later rose to 58 ± 15 by 2019 with minimal changes in other variables. Most (86%) had nighttime PD, averaging 4.9 (1.3) cycles/day, 9.3 (2.5) L total volume, and a median daily dwell time of 7 (6-9.5) hours. Compared to day 1, there were small increases in patients with 3 or fewer or 6+ cycles/day, a 100 ml mean increase in fill volume per exchange, and a 0.5 L increase in total nighttime volume at day 120. On day 120, 49% of prescriptions were unchanged.
Investigators concluded that in the first 4 months of therapy, limited variability was observed in APD prescription among patients with PD.
Source: journals.lww.com/cjasn/fulltext/9900/trends_in_automated_peritoneal_dialysis.357.aspx
