Nephrology Referral Research Articles

POS-591 STUDY OF AV FISTULA AS THE INITIAL ACCESS FOR HEMODIALYSIS IN SAUDI ARABIAN ESRD POPULATION. CURRENT SITUATION AND BARRIERS TO OVERCOME FOR TIMELY AVF CREATION

In Saudi Arabia, the prevalence of patients with Chronic Kidney Disease requiring renal replacement therapy is increasing. Most of the ESRD patients receive hemodialysis. KDOQI guidelines recommend that AV Fistula should be preferred as initial access for hemodialysis over a catheter. It also recommends early nephrology referral for creation of access. We studied the prevalence of AVF as the initial access for Hemodialysis in our patients and the barriers leading to delay in AVF creation. We also evaluated whether early referral to Nephrologists improved the rate of AVF creation.

POS-191 EXTERNAL VALIDATION AND COMPARISON OF RISK PREDICTION SCORING TOOLS FOR ACUTE KIDNEY INJURY IN PATIENTS WITH MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION IN A TERTIARY HOSPITAL IN DAVAO CITY

Patients with acute myocardial infarction are at high risk of developing acute kidney Injury (AKI). In settings where AKI biomarkers are not readily available, the use of a scoring system upon patient's admission may benefit those with high probability of developing AKI as this may allow prompt institution of renal protective measures such as avoidance of overzealous diuresis, wide variations in blood pressure, use of high volume contrast media, acute anemia from blood loss, and use of relatively nephrotoxic agents that may require renal dose adjustments and, perhaps, an early nephrology referral. From January 2015 to December 2019, a total of 384 charts were gathered based on inclusion criteria. After thorough chart review, 317 charts were excluded and 69 patient charts were included for the study. The continuous baseline characteristics of AKI and non-AKI patients in this study were analyzed using Shapiro-Wilk Test for normality. Comparison of these baseline characteristics was done using Independent Sample T-test and presented as mean and standard deviation otherwise, Mann-Whitney U Test was used and presented with mean rank. Pearson Chi Square or Fisher’s Exact Test was used to compare categorical characteristics. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Overall diagnostic accuracy of both scoring tools was assessed by area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curve. SPSS was used to determine the specificity, sensitivity and AUROC of all possible cut-off scores for each scoring tool. Online statistical calculators were used to calculate for the positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), accuracy, and likelihood ratios. The study population consisted of 69 patients, 23 (33.3%) of whom developed acute kidney injury based on the KDIGO criteria. These patients were further categorized as having stage 1 (78.3%), stage 2 (17.4%), or stage 3 (4.3%) AKI. The two risk scoring tools used in this study to predict the occurrence of acute kidney injury in those who had an acute myocardial infarction are those of Abusaada et al and Xu et al. The cut-off scores for Abusaada’s and Xu’s tools are similar at >/= 4. Results showed a higher sensitivity analysis for Xu (91% vs 61%). However, Abusaada’s scoring tool had higher values for specificity (85% vs 7%), PPV (66.7% vs 32.8%), NPV (81.2% vs 60%), accuracy (76.8% vs 34.7%), and positive likelihood ratio (4 vs .98). For purposes of comparison, the scoring tool of Xu required adjustment to arrive at the cut-off score with the highest accuracy. After adjustment, AUROC values were calculated showing .717 (95% CI: .58-.86) for Abusaada and .764 (95% CI: .64-.89) for Xu which had no statistical difference (p-value .447). This study concluded that there is a high incidence of AKI in patients with acute myocardial infarction. Of the available recently validated risk assessment tools that can stratify patients in terms of developing AKI, between Xu et al and Abusaada et al, this study favors the use of the Abusaada scoring system because it did not require any adjustment to arrive at the highest accuracy level. This scoring can be employed immediately upon admission to aid in the preemptive management of AKI in patients with myocardial infarction. This was found to have a good predictive index for AKI occurrence in the setting of AMI.

Center-Effect of Incident Hemodialysis Vascular Access Use: Analysis of a Bi-national Registry.

Commencing hemodialysis (HD) with an arteriovenous access is associated with superior patient outcomes compared with a catheter, but the majority of patients in Australia and New Zealand initiate HD with a central venous catheter. This study examined patient and center factors associated with arteriovenous fistula/graft access use at HD commencement. We included all adult patients starting chronic HD in Australia and New Zealand between 2004 and 2015. Access type at HD initiation was analyzed using logistic regression. Patient-level factors included sex, age, race, body mass index (BMI), smoking status, primary kidney disease, late nephrologist referral, comorbidities, and prior RRT. Center-level factors included size; transplant capability; home HD proportion; incident peritoneal dialysis (average number of patients commencing RRT with peritoneal dialysis per year); mean weekly HD hours; average blood flow; and achievement of phosphate, hemoglobin, and weekly Kt/V targets. The study included 27,123 patients from 61 centers. Arteriovenous access use at HD commencement varied four-fold from 15% to 62% (median 39%) across centers. Incident arteriovenous access use was more likely in patients aged 51-72 years, males, and patients with a BMI of >25 kg/m2 and polycystic kidney disease; but use was less likely in patients with a BMI of <18.5 kg/m2, late nephrologist referral, diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease, and prior RRT. Starting HD with an arteriovenous access was less likely in centers with the highest proportion of home HD, and no center factor was associated with higher arteriovenous access use. Adjustment for center-level characteristics resulted in a 25% reduction in observed intercenter variability of arteriovenous access use at HD initiation compared with the model adjusted for only patient-level characteristics. This study identified several patient and center factors associated with incident HD access use, yet these factors did not fully explain the substantial variability in arteriovenous access use across centers.

Acute kidney injury in the pediatric intensive care unit: outpatient follow-up.

Few studies have characterized follow-up after pediatric acute kidney injury (AKI). Our aim was to describe outpatient AKI follow-up after pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admission. Two-center retrospective cohort study (0-18 years; PICU survivors (2003-2005); noncardiac surgery; and no baseline kidney disease). Provincial administrative databases were used to determine outcomes. AKI (KDIGO (Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes) definitions). post-discharge nephrology, family physician, pediatrician, and non-nephrology specialist visits. Regression was used to evaluate factors associated with the presence of nephrology follow-up (Cox) and the number of nephrology and family physician or pediatrician visits (Poisson), among AKI survivors. Of n = 2041, 355 (17%) had any AKI; 64/355 (18%) had nephrology; 198 (56%) had family physician or pediatrician; and 338 (95%) had family physician, pediatrician, or non-nephrology specialist follow-up by 1 year post discharge. Only 44/142 (31%) stage 2-3 AKI patients had nephrology follow-up by 1 year. Inpatient nephrology consult (adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) 7.76 [95% confidence interval (CI) 4.89-12.30]), kidney admission diagnosis (aHR 4.26 [2.21-8.18]), and AKI non-recovery by discharge (aHR 2.65 [1.55-4.55]) were associated with 1-year nephrology follow-up among any AKI survivors. Nephrology follow-up after AKI was uncommon, but nearly all AKI survivors had follow-up with non-nephrologist physicians. This suggests that AKI follow-up knowledge translation strategies for non-nephrology providers should be a priority. Pediatric AKI survivors have high long-term rates of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and hypertension, justifying regular kidney health surveillance after AKI. However, there is limited pediatric data on follow-up after AKI, including the factors associated with nephrology referral and extent of non-nephrology follow-up. We found that only one-fifth of all AKI survivors and one-third of severe AKI (stage 2-3) survivors have nephrology follow-up within 1 year post discharge. However, 95% are seen by a family physician, pediatrician, or non-nephrology specialist within 1 year post discharge. This suggests that knowledge translation strategies for AKI follow-up should be targeted at non-nephrology healthcare providers.

End-stage renal disease at dialysis initiation: Epidemiology and mortality risks during the first year of hemodialysis.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) treated by hemodialysis (HD) is a worldwide major public health problem. Its incidence is getting higher and higher, leading to an alarming social and economic impact. The survival of these patients is significantly low, especially during the first year of treatment. The purpose of our study was to identify the epidemiological and clinico-biological characteristics of patients at the HD initiation and to reveal the predictive factors of mortality at three months and one year of HD. This is a prospective, analytical, and descriptive study dealing with 229 patients with an end-stage renal disease (ESRD), followed up in the Nephrology Department of Charles Nicolle Hospital and La Rabta Hospital in Tunisia, that was started HD between January and June 2017. A multivariate logistic regression analysis allowed us to identify the independent predictors of mortality at three months and one year. The average age was 60.2 ± 15.3 years, with a gender ratio of 1.41. Seventy-eight percent of patients had more than two comorbidities, 59% had diabetes, and 88% had hypertension. Diabetic nephropathy was the leading etiology of kidney disease (48.9%), while 11% of nephropathies were of unknown etiology. Only 58% were early referred to a nephrologist. The average glomerular filtration rate at HD initiation was 6.06 ± 2.33 mL/min/1.73 m2. Hypocalcemia and hyperphosphatemia were noted, respectively, in 60.8% and 84.9% of cases. Anemia was objectified in 98.6% of cases. HD was started in an emergency in 56.8% of cases. One of the most urgent indications was acute pulmonary edema (APE) for 43.8% of patients. Only 10.5% of patients had functional arteriovenous fistula at the dialysis initiation. Patients were hemodialyzed one, two, or three sessions per week, respectively, in 23.2%, 26.6%, and 50.2% of cases. The crude mortality rate was 25% and 13% in, respectively, one year and three months of HD. On multivariate analysis, we identified heart failure and insufficient dialysis dose per week as predictive factors of mortality at the 1st year of HD. C-reactive protein more than 21 mg/L, insufficient dialysis per week, modified Charlson Comorbidity Index less than 6, and APE at the dialysis initiation were identified as predictive factors of three-month mortality. Despite the short period of study, this work revealed the alarming conditions of patients at HD initiation. This critical situation is due to the delay in CKD diagnosis, the late nephrologist referral, and the lack of preparation before HD initiation.

Predictors of technique failure and mortality on peritoneal dialysis: An analysis of New Zealand peritoneal dialysis registry data.

Technique failure is a major disadvantage associated with peritoneal dialysis (PD). This study aimed to analyse the demographic and risk predictors of technique failure and mortality in patients on PD. All incidental PD patients registered on the New Zealand Peritoneal dialysis registry (NZPDR) from January 1995 to December 2014 were included in the study. The primary outcomes were time to technique failure and its specific causes, while as the secondary outcome was time to death. Risk predictors of technique failure and mortality were analysed using multivariate Cox proportional hazards (PH) regression model. Besides, competitive risk regression analysis was undertaken to analyse the effect of death as a competing event to technique failure. Of 6379 patients, there were 2993 (46.9%) episodes of technique failure and 2684 (42%) deaths. The crude technique failure and mortality rates were 165 ± 5.90 and 147.9 ± 5.50 (mean ± SD)/1000 patient-years, respectively. Hazards of technique failure were lower in older individuals above 60 years, HR 0.72 (95% CI 0.67-0.79), larger centres, HR 0.89 (95% CI 0.79-1.00) and higher with coiled catheters, HR 1.26 (95% CI 1.16-1.37). Early nephrology referral, continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and Asian ethnicities were associated with better technique survival. Infections were the major cause of technique failure (58.4%) with peritonitis being the leading cause (30.2%). There are multiple factors associated with risk of technique failure, therefore it is persuasive to construct a mathematical model for early prediction, for a planned transition to HD.

Long-term consequences of acute kidney injury: a narrative review.

The incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI) has increased in the past decades. AKI complicates up to 15% of hospitalizations and can reach up to 50–60% in critically ill patients. Besides the short-term impact of AKI in patient outcomes, several studies report the association between AKI and adverse long-term outcomes, such as recurrent AKI episodes in 25–30% of cases, hospital re-admissions in up to 40% of patients, an increased risk of cardiovascular events, an increased risk of progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD) after AKI and a significantly increased long-term mortality. Despite the long-term impact of AKI, there are neither established guidelines on the follow-up care of AKI patients, nor treatment strategies to reduce the incidence of sequelae after AKI. Only a minority of patients have been referred to nephrology post-discharge care, despite the evidence of improved outcomes associated with nephrology referral by addressing cardiovascular risk and risk of progression to CKD. Indeed, AKI survivors should have specialized nephrology follow-up to assess kidney function after AKI, perform medication reconciliation, educate patients on nephrotoxic avoidance and implement strategies to prevent CKD progression. The authors provide a comprehensive review of the transition from AKI to CKD, analyse the current evidence on the long-term outcomes of AKI and describe predisposing risk factors, highlight the importance of follow-up care in these patients and describe the current therapeutic strategies which are being investigated on their impact in improving patient outcomes.

Nephrology consultation and kidney failure in people with stage 4 chronic kidney disease: a population-based cohort study.

Guidelines recommend referral for nephrology consultation for people with severe chronic kidney disease (CKD) to improve care and renal outcomes, yet the advocated benefits of nephrology referral on CKD progression in this patient population are unclear. We linked laboratory and administrative data in Alberta, Canada to identify adults with stage 4 CKD between 2002 and 2014 (follow-up end on March 31, 2017). We studied the association between time-varying receipt of outpatient nephrology consultation and kidney failure (the earlier of renal replacement initiation or eGFR < 10mL/min/1.73 m2 for more than 3months), accounting for the competing risk of death. Of the 14,382 participants, 41% were ≥ 85years old, 33% saw a nephrologist as an outpatient, 9% developed kidney failure, and 53% died over a median of 2.6years. Compared with people who did not see a nephrologist before or at 7months (median time to consultation), those who did were more likely to develop kidney failure [5-year risk (95% CI) 0.23 (0.21-0.24) vs 0.07 (0.065-0.075)]. With increasing age or higher eGFR, the 5-year risk of kidney failure became progressively smaller, from 0.24 (0.18-0.29) at age < 65 to 0.01 (0.006-0.015) at age ≥ 85years and from 0.21 (0.18-0.23) at eGFR 15-19 to 0.066 (0.060-0.072) at eGFR 25-29mL/min/1.73 m2; yet, the hazard ratio of kidney failure (1.6-4.3) increased following nephrology consultation in people who were older or had higher eGFR. Adults with stage 4 CKD who see a nephrologist are more likely to develop kidney failure than those who don't, especially within lower absolute risk categories. Although selective referral may explain these findings, there is no evidence of an association between nephrology care and reduced risk of kidney failure in people with severe CKD. Studies are needed to assess the benefits of nephrology consultation in people with moderate CKD.

Primary care referrals to nephrology in patients with advanced kidney disease.

Optimizing care for patients with advanced kidney disease requires close collaboration between primary care physicians (PCPs) and nephrologists. Factors associated with PCP referral to nephrology were assessed in patients with estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFRs) less than 30 mL/min/1.73 m2. Electronic health record review at an integrated health care network. Factors associated with referral status were identified using Fisher's exact tests, t tests, and multivariable logistic regression. Of 133,913 patients regularly seeing PCPs between October 2017 and September 2019, 1119 had a final eGFR less than 30 mL/min/1.73 m2 and were not on renal replacement therapy. Care was provided by 185 PCPs (61 practices). Analyses were restricted to the 97.1% (n = 1087) of patients who were African American or European American. Of these, 54.6% had not been referred to nephrology. Nonreferred patients had higher numbers of PCP visits (P = .004). In contrast, referred patients were younger, were more often African American, and had PCPs at the academic medical center (all P < .0001). Referred patients had more complex medical histories with higher Charlson Comorbidity Index scores, more hospitalizations, and greater numbers of inpatient days (all P < .0001). Analyses restricted to patients with serum creatinine concentration of at least 2 mg/dL yielded similar results. Age, number of hospitalizations, ancestry, academic physician, diabetic end-organ damage, peripheral vascular disease, and tumor status were independent predictors of nephrology referral. Impediments to appropriately timed nephrology referrals persist in patients with high likelihoods of progression to end-stage kidney disease. Improved access to nephrology care should be rapidly addressed to meet targets in the 2019 Executive Order on Advancing American Kidney Health.

Nephrology and Hematology Referral Trends in CKD Patients with Monoclonal Gammopathy and Factors Associated with Deferring Kidney Biopsy

Nephrology and Hematology Referral Trends in CKD Patients with Monoclonal Gammopathy and Factors Associated with Deferring Kidney Biopsy

Defining Criteria for CKD Stage 3 Patients Nephrology Referral: An Analysis Focused on CKD Progression and Mortality Risk

Defining Criteria for CKD Stage 3 Patients Nephrology Referral: An Analysis Focused on CKD Progression and Mortality Risk

Laboratory-Based Potential Indications vs. Risk-Based Triage for Nephrology Referrals in the Veterans Affairs Health System

Laboratory-Based Potential Indications vs. Risk-Based Triage for Nephrology Referrals in the Veterans Affairs Health System

Screening and Recognition of Chronic Kidney Disease in VA Health Care System Primary Care Clinics.

The successful implementation of interventions targeted to improve kidney health requires early identification of CKD which involves screening at-risk populations as well as recognizing CKD. We aim to determine CKD screening and recognition rates, factors associated with these rates, and evaluate the effect of CKD awareness on delivery of care. A retrospective cohort study of veterans enrolled with Veterans Integrated Service Network 17 who had hypertension (HTN) and/or diabetes (DM) and were seen at least twice in primary care clinics within 18 months. The final cohort of 270,170 patients (52% HTN, 5% DM, and 44% both) was examined for serum creatinine/eGFR, urine protein/albumin, International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes for CKD, and nephrology referral. CKD was defined as eGFR <60 ml/min per 1.73 m2 and/or urine albumin-creatinine ratio (uACR) >30 mg/g at least twice 90 days apart. Clinical covariates, HTN control, and prescription rates of renal prudent medications and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) were assessed. Overall, 254,831 (94%) patients had either eGFR, urine protein/albumin, or both. However, screening for protein/albuminuria was low (56%), particularly in patients with isolated HTN (35%). Of 254,831 patients, 92,900 (36%) had laboratory evidence of CKD and, of these, 40,586 (44%) were recognized to have CKD by ICD code and/or nephrology referral. CKD due to presence of uACR criteria alone had the lowest recognition (19%) as compared with CKD due to eGFR criteria (44%) or both (67%). Frequency of emergency room visits, hospitalization, and cardiac and endovascular procedures requiring contrast had the highest odds and races other than white had the lower odds of screening. In contrast, CKD recognition was high in races other than white and increased with worsening eGFR and increasing uACR. In screened and recognized CKD, prescription was higher for angiotensin inhibitors, statins, and diuretics, and was lower for NSAIDs. Although overall CKD screening rate was high, screening of protein/albuminuria in isolated HTN and overall recognition of CKD was low in at-risk veterans. Increased recognition was associated with a favorable prescription rate for renal prudent medications.

Optimizing the timing of nephrology referral for patients with diabetic kidney disease

Age-standardized rates of diabetes mellitus (DM)-related complications, such as acute myocardial infarction, stroke or amputations, have decreased in recent years, but this was not associated with a clear reduction of the incidence of advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) requiring renal replacement therapy. The early detection of diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a key to reduce complications, morbidity and mortality. Consensus documents and clinical practice guidelines recommend referral of DM patients to nephrology when the estimated glomerular filtration rate falls below 30 mL/min/1.73 m2 or when albuminuria exceeds 300 mg/g urinary creatinine. Conceptually, it strikes as odd that patients with CKD are referred to the specialist caring for the prevention and treatment of CKD only when >70% of the functioning kidney mass has been lost. The increasing global health burden of CKD, driven in large part by DKD, the suboptimal impact of routine care on DKD outcomes as compared with other DM complications, the realization that successful therapy of CKD requires early diagnosis and intervention, the advances in earlier diagnosis of kidney injury and the recent availability of antidiabetic drugs with a renal mechanism of action and lack of hypoglycaemia risk, which additionally are cardio- and nephroprotective, all point towards a paradigm shift in the care for DM patients in which they should be referred earlier to nephrology as part of a coordinated and integrated care approach.

An independent validation of the kidney failure risk equation in an Asian population

Predicting the risk of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) progression facilitates appropriate nephrology care of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Previously, the kidney failure risk equations (KFREs) were developed and validated in several cohorts. The purpose of this study is to validate the KFREs in a Korean population and to recalibrate the equations. A total of 38,905 adult patients, including 13,244 patients with CKD stages G3–G5, who were referred to nephrology were recruited. Using the original KFREs (4-, 6- and 8-variable equations) and recalibration equations, we predicted the risk of 2- and 5-year ESRD progression. All analyses were conducted in CKD stages G3-G5 patients as well as the total population. In CKD stages G3–G5 patients, All the original 4-, 6- and 8-variable equations showed excellent areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.87 and 0.83 for the 2- and 5-year risk of ESRD, respectively. The results of net reclassification improvement, integrated discrimination index and Brier score showed that recalibration improved the prediction models in some cases. The original KFREs showed high discrimination in both CKD stages G3–G5 patients and the total population referred to nephrology in this large Korean cohort. KFREs can be implemented in Korean health systems and can guide nephrology referrals and other CKD-related treatment decisions.

Combined use of GM2AP and TCP1-eta urinary levels predicts recovery from intrinsic acute kidney injury

Deficient recovery from acute kidney injury (AKI) has immediate and long-term health, clinical and economic consequences. Pre-emptive recovery estimation may improve nephrology referral, optimize decision making, enrollment in trials, and provide key information for subsequent clinical handling and follow-up. For this purpose, new biomarkers are needed that predict outcome during the AKI episode. We hypothesized that damage pattern-specific biomarkers are expected to more closely associate to outcome within distinct subpopulations (i.e. those affected by specific pathological processes determining a specific outcome), as biomarker pleiotropy (i.e. associated to phenomena unrelated to AKI) introduced by unselected, heterogeneous populations may blur statistics. A panel of urinary biomarkers was measured in patients with AKI and their capacity to associate to normal or abnormal recovery was studied in the whole cohort or after sub-classification by AKI etiology, namely pre-renal and intrinsic AKI. A combination of urinary GM2AP and TCP1-eta best associates with recovery from AKI, specifically within the sub-population of renal AKI patients. This two-step strategy generates a multidimensional space in which patients with specific characteristics (i.e. renal AKI patients with good or bad prognosis) can be identified based on a collection of biomarkers working serially, applying pathophysiology-driven criteria to estimate AKI recovery, to facilitate pre-emptive and personalized handling.

P1432THE PRE-DIALYSIS CARE TRAJECTORIES OF ESRD PATIENTS: WHAT TYPES AND WHAT FACTORS OF EMERGENCY DIALYSIS START?

Abstract Background and Aims According to the REIN registry, in France in 2017, 30% of incident end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients started dialysis in emergency. Emergency dialysis start (ES) is associated with higher risks of morbidity and mortality as well as a decreased quality of life for patients. The objectives were to describe groups of patients with similar care trajectories (or “types”) and identify the factors associated with ES. Method Data from the French REIN registry linked with the French national health insurance database (SNDS) were used. Patients aged 18 years old and older who started dialysis in 2015 in France were included. The 2 years pre-dialysis care trajectory was defined using 8 key components of ambulatory and hospital CKD care consumption. Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) on these components was performed before a Hierarchical Clustering on Principal Components (HCPC) in order to identify types of care trajectories. Logistic regression models including both patients’ characteristics and the key CKD healthcare consumption were used to identify factors associated with ES. Results Among the 8856 patients included, 2681 (30.3%) started dialysis in emergency. The HCPC identified 6 types of pre-dialysis care trajectories. ES rate ranged from 11% to 62% depending on the type. Patient’s profiles were also different between types of trajectories, including age and comorbidities (diabetes prevalence ranged from 22% to 56%). For example, the 5th and 6th types of pre-dialysis care trajectories with high ES rates were characterized by low and absent CKD healthcare consumption respectively. They were shared by younger and less comorbid patients (26.7% and 25.7% aged &amp;lt; 45 years old, 66.5% and 59.4% without any cardiovascular diseases respectively). Conversely to the absence of nephrologist follow-up, the absence of general practitioner follow-up was not significantly associated with ES (OR=1.83, CI 95% [1.58-2.13] and OR=0.79, CI 95% [0.61-1.04] respectively). Conclusion Exploiting the strength of the combined use of clinical and healthcare consumption data, our study shows the diversity of pre-dialysis care trajectories of CKD patients. While some of these types of trajectories can be explained by patients’ clinical and demographic characteristics, complementary qualitative approaches are required to fully understand ES. Some types, as well as ES associated factors, highlight the need for earlier CKD screening and nephrologist referral.

Gender, Albuminuria and Chronic Kidney Disease Progression in Treated Diabetic Kidney Disease.

Background: Women are reported to have a lower incidence of renal replacement therapy, despite a higher prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Aim: To analyze diabetic kidney disease (DKD) progression in men and women. Methods: Prospective cohort: n = 261, 35% women, new consecutive nephrology DKD referrals. Results: Women smoked less and better complied with the dietary phosphate and sodium restrictions. Despite a less frequent nephrology referral, women had lower baseline albuminuria. Over a 30 ± 10-month follow-up, albuminuria decreased in women and the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) loss was slower than in men. However, the percentage of rapid progressors was similar in both sexes. The best multivariate model predicting rapid progression in men (area under curve (AUC) = 0.92) and women differed. Albuminuria and fractional excretion of phosphate (FEphosphate) were part of the men multivariable model, but not of women. The AUC for the prediction of rapid progression by albuminuria was higher in men than in women, and the albuminuria cut-off points also differed. In women, there was a higher percentage of rapid progressors who had baseline physiological albuminuria. Conclusions: Female DKD differs from male DKD: albuminuria was milder and better responsive to therapy, the loss of eGFR was slower and the predictors of rapid progression differed from men: albuminuria was a better predictor in men than in women. Lifestyle factors may contribute to the differences.

Duration of predialysis nephrological care and mortality after dialysis initiation.

The duration of predialysis nephrological care that can reduceall-cause and cardiovascularmortality after dialysis initiation has not been clarified. A total of 1117 patients who started chronic dialysis treatment from 2006 to 2015 at Osaka General Medical Center were analyzed.Independent risk factors associated with all-cause and cardiovascular mortalityafter dialysis initiationand early death (death within 12months after dialysis initiation) were identified using Cox proportional hazards analysis. Moreover, the duration of predialysis nephrology care that could reduce mortality was explored using severaldifferentdefinitions ofearly referral as well as "6months" commonly used in previous studies. Of 1117 patients, 834 were referred6months before dialysis initiation.During the follow-up period (median, 34months), 324 patients diedafter dialysis initiation. Although multivariate Cox analysis did not show a favorable association betweenearly referral of"6months before dialysis initiation" and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, 20-month predialysis nephrological care was associated with better first-yearoverallsurvival after dialysis initiation (hazard ratio 0.58; 95% confidence interval 0.35-0.98; P = 0.040). More than 6months nephrological care before dialysis initiation was not early enough to reduceall-cause and cardiovascular mortality after dialysis initiation. Our results suggest that nephrology referral 20months before dialysis initiation would be necessary toreducefirst-yearoverall survivalafter dialysis initiation.

Pre-ESKD Nephrology Care and Employment at the Start of Dialysis

IntroductionEmployment is associated with an improved sense of well-being and quality of life in patients with kidney disease. Earlier nephrology referral and longer duration of pre–end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) nephrology care are associated with improved health outcomes in patients with advanced kidney disease who initiate dialysis. It is unknown if pre-ESKD nephrology care helps patients stay employed leading up to dialysis initiation.MethodsWe used the US ESKD registry to identify adults aged 18–54 years who initiated dialysis between 2007 and 2014. Analyses were restricted to patients who reported being employed 6 months prior to ESKD. We used multivariable regression models with estimated average marginal effects to examine the independent association between ≥6 months of pre-ESKD nephrology care and employment at dialysis initiation. To reduce bias, we conducted an instrumental variable (IV) analysis based on geographic variation in pre-ESKD care.ResultsOf 75,700 patients included in study cohort, 49% reported receiving pre-ESKD nephrology care for ≥6 months, and 62% were employed at dialysis initiation. Although geographic variation in pre-ESKD nephrology care was strongly associated with the likelihood that working-aged patients in our analytic cohort received pre-ESKD care, the receipt of pre-ESKD nephrology care was not significantly associated with employment at dialysis initiation; estimated probability: 5%; 95% confidence interval (CI) –6% to 14%.ConclusionsPre-ESKD nephrology care 6 months prior to initiation of dialysis is not associated with the likelihood of remaining employed at the initiation of dialysis. Although nephrology care has potential to help patients remain employed, this benefit is not manifested in current practice.