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Hemodialysis (HD) dependence and autogenous fistula use for HD span the spectrum of age. This study examines age-related outcomes of autogenous fistulas for HD access in a large population-based cohort of patients.A retrospective cohort study of all patients who initiated HD in the United States Renal Database System (2007-2014). χOf the 303,281 patients studied, 48,892 (16.1%) were younger than 50 years, 55,817 (18.4%) were 50 to 59 years, 79,138 (26.1%) were 60 to 69 years, 75,200 (24.8%) were 70 to 79 years, and 44,234 (14.6%) were 80 years or older. There was a decrease in autogenous fistula maturation with increasing age. Primary patency at 5 years comparing patients 50 vs 50 to 59 vs 60 to 69 vs 70 to 79 vs 80+ years was 24% vs 23% vs 21% vs 20% vs 18% (P .001). Primary assisted patency at 5 years was 38% vs 40% vs 37% vs 35% vs 33% (P .001). Secondary patency at 5 years was 48% vs 50% vs 47% vs 45% vs 42% (P .001). The risk-adjusted analyses revealed a progressive decrease in primary, primary assisted, and secondary patency with increasing age. As expected, patient survival decreased with increasing age.In this population-based cohort of HD patients, there was a decrease in autogenous fistula maturation, primary patency, primary assisted patency, secondary patency, and patient survival with increasing age. Despite the relative decline in outcomes associated with older age, decisions about arteriovenous access creation in older patients should be individualized, taking overall clinical status and outcomes of alternatives modes of access into consideration.

We aimed to validate three IgAN risk models proposed by an international collaborative study and another CKD risk model generated by an extended CKD cohort with our multicenter Chinese IgAN cohort. Biopsy-proven IgAN patients with an eGFR ≥15 ml/min/1.73 m2 at baseline and a minimum follow-up of 6 months were enrolled. The primary outcomes were a composite outcome (50% decline in eGFR or ESRD) and ESRD. The performance of those models was assessed using discrimination, calibration, and reclassification. A total of 2,300 eligible cases were enrolled. Of them, 288 (12.5%) patients reached composite outcome and 214 (9.3%) patients reached ESRD during a median follow-up period of 30 months. Using the composite outcome for analysis, the Clinical, Limited, Full, and CKD models had relatively good performance with similar C statistics (0.81, 0.81, 0.82, and 0.82, respectively). While using ESRD as the end point, the four prediction models had better performance (all C statistics > 0.9). Furthermore, subgroup analysis showed that the models containing clinical and pathological variables (Full model and Limited model) had better discriminatory abilities than the models including only clinical indicators (Clinical model and CKD model) in low-risk patients characterized by higher baseline eGFR (≥60 ml/min/1.73 m2). In conclusion, we validated recently reported IgAN and CKD risk models in our Chinese IgAN cohort. Compared to pure clinical models, adding pathological variables will increase performance in predicting ESRD in low-risk IgAN patients with baseline eGFR ≥60 ml/min/1.73 m2.

Objectives To identify and assess the quality and accuracy of prognostic models for nephropathy and to validate these models in external cohorts of people with type 2 diabetes. Design Systematic review and external validation. Data sources PubMed and Embase. Eligibility criteria Studies describing the development of a model to predict the risk of nephropathy, applicable to people with type 2 diabetes. Methods Screening, data extraction, and risk of bias assessment were done in duplicate. Eligible models were externally validated in the Hoorn Diabetes Care System (DCS) cohort (n=11 450) for the same outcomes for which they were developed. Risks of nephropathy were calculated and compared with observed risk over 2, 5, and 10 years of follow-up. Model performance was assessed based on intercept adjusted calibration and discrimination (Harrell’s C statistic). Results 41 studies included in the systematic review reported 64 models, 46 of which were developed in a population with diabetes and 18 in the general population including diabetes as a predictor. The predicted outcomes included albuminuria, diabetic kidney disease, chronic kidney disease (general population), and end stage renal disease. The reported apparent discrimination of the 46 models varied considerably across the different predicted outcomes, from 0.60 (95% confidence interval 0.56 to 0.64) to 0.99 (not available) for the models developed in a diabetes population and from 0.59 (not available) to 0.96 (0.95 to 0.97) for the models developed in the general population. Calibration was reported in 31 of the 41 studies, and the models were generally well calibrated. 21 of the 64 retrieved models were externally validated in the Hoorn DCS cohort for predicting risk of albuminuria, diabetic kidney disease, and chronic kidney disease, with considerable variation in performance across prediction horizons and models. For all three outcomes, however, at least two models had C statistics >0.8, indicating excellent discrimination. In a secondary external validation in GoDARTS (Genetics of Diabetes Audit and Research in Tayside Scotland), models developed for diabetic kidney disease outperformed those for chronic kidney disease. Models were generally well calibrated across all three prediction horizons. Conclusions This study identified multiple prediction models to predict albuminuria, diabetic kidney disease, chronic kidney disease, and end stage renal disease. In the external validation, discrimination and calibration for albuminuria, diabetic kidney disease, and chronic kidney disease varied considerably across prediction horizons and models. For each outcome, however, specific models showed good discrimination and calibration across the three prediction horizons, with clinically accessible predictors, making them applicable in a clinical setting. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD42020192831.

Background Frailty and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) are each independently associated with adverse outcomes in patients who undergo lower extremity vascular bypass operations (LEOs). It is not known whether frailty imparts additional risk to patients with ESRD having LEO. Methods The study was a retrospective cohort study of 29 203 patients without ESRD and 1718 with ESRD who had LEO surgery between the years 2014 and 2018 extracted from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. Preoperative frailty was assessed using a simplified frailty index based on a history of diabetes, heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension, and functional status. Adverse outcomes measured were 30-day mortality, surgical complications, reoperation, length of stay, readmission, discharge destination, and any (“composite”) adverse outcome. Odds ratios (ORs) for adverse outcomes were calculated with logistic regression. Results Among patients with ESRD, the OR for having the composite adverse outcome was greater for frailty than for any of the other preoperative risk factors studied (OR 2.191, CI 1.569-3.061, P < .001). Adverse outcomes occurred in 84.3% of frail patients with ESRD, but in only 39.6% of the non-frail patients without ESRD. Conclusions Frailty imparts additional risk for adverse outcomes to patients with ESRD undergoing LEO.

Background Type 2 diabetes mellitus is common in patients undergoing dialysis. However, the association between anti-diabetic drug use and survival outcomes is rarely discussed. We aimed to investigate whether continued anti-diabetic medication use affects the survival of diabetic dialysis patients and whether different hypoglycemic drug use influences prognosis. Methods Using a nationwide database, we enrolled patients with incident end-stage renal disease under maintenance dialysis during 2011–2015 into the pre-existing diabetes dialysis (PDD), incident diabetes after dialysis (IDD), and non-diabetic dialysis (NDD) groups. The PDD group was further subclassified into patients who continued (PDD-M) and discontinued (PDD-NM) anti-diabetic drug use after dialysis. Results A total of 5249 dialysis patients were examined. The PDD-NM group displayed a significantly higher mortality rate than the IDD, PDD-M, and NDD groups (log-rank test P Conclusions For dialysis patients with diabetes, continuous administration of anti-diabetic drugs after dialysis and choice of medication may affect outcomes.

BACKGROUND There is increasing awareness of the impact of obesity and underweight on cardiovascular (CV) disease, chronic kidney disease (CKD) and mortality. Abnormal body mass index (BMI) might be associated with worse clinical outcomes, including CKD progression, but limited evidence exists among Asian patients with high CV risk. OBJECTIVE To investigate the association of BMI with progressive loss of kidney function and all-cause mortality in Thai patients with high CV risk. METHODS In a national cohort of 5887 high CV risk subjects, we assessed the association of high BMI with the composite renal outcome (estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] decline over 40%, eGFR less than 15 mL/min/1.73 m2 , doubling of serum creatinine, initiation of dialysis and death related to renal causes) and with all-cause mortality in Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS A total of 5887 participants (3217 male and 2670 female) with high CV risk were enrolled. Participants were classified into five groups by their baseline BMI

Background Aortic stenosis is prevalent in end‐stage renal disease. Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is a plausible alternative for surgical aortic valve replacement. However, little is known regarding long‐term outcomes in patients with end‐stage renal disease who undergo TAVR. Methods and Results We identified all patients with end‐stage renal disease who underwent TAVR from 2011 through 2016 using the United States Renal Data System. The primary end point was 5‐year mortality after TAVR. Factors associated with 1‐ and 5‐year mortality were analyzed. A total of 3883 TAVRs were performed for patients with end‐stage renal disease. Mortality was 5.8%, 43.7%, and 88.8% at 30 days, 1 year, and 5 years, respectively. Case volumes increased rapidly from 17 in 2011 to 1495 in 2016. Thirty‐day mortality demonstrated a dramatic reduction from 11.1% in 2012 to 2.5% in 2016 ( P =0.01). Age 75 or older (hazard ratio [HR], 1.14; 95% CI, 1.05–1.23 [ P =0.002]), body mass index P P P P =0.004]), and White race (HR, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.06–1.3 [ P =0.002]) were independently associated with 5‐year mortality. Conclusions Short‐term outcomes of TAVR in patients with end‐stage renal disease have improved significantly. However, long‐term mortality of patients on dialysis remains high.

PurposeTo compare the risks of chronic kidney disease (CKD), end-stage renal disease (ESRD), sight-threatening retinopathy, and leg amputation between patients with diabetes or hypertension.MethodsFrom January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2015, we identified 28943 matched pairs of patients with diabetes with and without subsequent hypertension, 89102 pairs of patients with hypertension with and without subsequent diabetes, and 145294 pairs of patients with coexisting diabetes and hypertension with a previous history of diabetes or hypertension from Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database. Cox proportional-hazard models were used for calculating the risks of CKD, sight-threatening retinopathy, and leg amputation.ResultsThe mean follow-up time of this study in different cohorts was between 3.59 and 4.28 years. In diabetes patients with vs. without subsequent hypertension, hypertension patients with vs. without subsequent diabetes, and comorbid diabetes and hypertension patients with previous diabetes vs. with previous hypertension, the adjusted HRs (95% CIs) for CKD were 2.77 (2.61-2.94), 1.73 (1.68-1.77), and 1.04 (1.02-1.07); for ESRD were 42.38 (22.62-79.4), 2.76 (2.43-3.13), and 0.72 (0.66-0.79); for sight-threatening retinopathy were 2.07 (1.85-2.3), 3.41 (3.14-3.71), and for leg amputation were 1.51 (1.43-1.58); and 4.74 (3.02-7.43), 6.27(4.72-8.31), and 1.19(1.03-1.38).ConclusionsThis study demonstrated that both diabetes and hypertension are risk factors for the development of CKD, retinopathy, and amputation. Tracing subsequent diabetes for patients with hypertension, and hypertension for patients with diabetes are important in clinical settings.

To support the development of guidelines on the management of carotid disease, a writing committee from the Society for Vascular Surgery has commissioned this systematic review.We searched multiple data bases for studies addressing five questions: medical management vs carotid revascularization (CEA) in asymptomatic patients, CEA vs carotid artery stenting (CAS) in symptomatic low surgical risk patients, the optimal timing of revascularization after acute stroke, screening high-risk patients for carotid disease, and the optimal sequence of interventions in patients with combined coronary and carotid disease. Studies were selected and appraised by pairs of independent reviewers. Meta-analyses were performed when feasible.Medical management compared with carotid interventions in asymptomatic patients was associated with better early outcome during the first 30 days. However, CEA was associated with significantly lower long-term rate of stroke/death at 5 years. In symptomatic low-risk surgical patients, CEA was associated with a lower risk of stroke, but a significant increase in myocardial infarction compared with CAS during the first 30 days. When the long-term outcome of transfemoral CAS vs CEA in symptomatic patients were examined using preplanned pooled analysis of individual patient data from four randomized trials, the risk of death or stroke within 120 days of the index procedure was 5.5% for CEA and 8.7% for CAS, which lends support that, over the long term, CEA has a superior outcome compared with transfemoral CAS. When managing acute stroke, the comparison of CEA during the first 48 hours to that between day 2 and day 14 did not reveal a statistically significant difference on outcomes during the first 30 days. Registry data show good results with CEA performed in the first week, but not within the first 48 hours. A single risk factor, aside from peripheral artery disease, was associated with low carotid screening yield. Multiple risk factors greatly increase the yield of screening. Evidence on the timing of interventions in patients with combined carotid and coronary disease was sparse and imprecise. Patients without carotid symptoms, who had the carotid intervention first, compared with a combined carotid intervention and coronary artery bypass grafting, had better outcomes.This updated evidence summary supports the Society for Vascular Surgery clinical practice guidelines for commonly raised clinical scenarios. CEA was superior to medical therapy in the long-term prevention of stroke/death over medical therapy. CEA was also superior to transfemoral CAS in minimizing long-term stroke/death for symptomatic low risk surgical patients. CEA should optimally be performed between 2 and 14 days from the onset of acute stroke. Having multiple risk factors increases the value of carotid screening.

OBJECTIVE Patients without adequate outpatient follow-up often present requiring emergency hemodialysis and then undergo permanent dialysis access placement at a later time. We sought to examine the relationship between type of insurance and whether a patient was already on dialysis at time of surgery. METHODS The Vascular Quality Initiative Hemodialysis Access registry was queried for all adult patients undergoing first time permanent hemodialysis access between January 2015 and September 2019. Patient and procedural characteristics were examined in patients split by private insurance-Medicare more than 65 years of age, Medicare less than 65 years of age, and Medicaid. The primary outcome was whether patients were on dialysis at the time of surgery. RESULTS There were 19,307 adult patients that underwent first time placement of an arteriovenous fistula or graft. Of these patients, 9729 (50%) had Medicare, 7179 (37%) had private insurance, and 2399 (12%) had Medicaid. The patients with Medicare were subgrouped by age with 2968 (31%) being less than 65 years of age and 6761 (69%) being more than 65 years of age. Patients with Medicare and less than 65 were the most likely to be on dialysis at the time of surgical access placement at 67%, whereas 59% of Medicaid patients were on dialysis, and 53% each group of patients with Medicare and more than 65 years of age and private insurance were on dialysis. After adjustment for patient characteristics, patients with Medicare who were less than 65 and more than 65 years of age were both significantly more likely to be on dialysis at time of surgery compared with private insurance with odds ratio (OR) of 1.64 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.49-1.80; P < .001) and an OR of 1.11 (95% CI, 1.03-1.20; P = .007), respectively. After adjustment, patients with Medicaid were no longer significantly more likely to be on dialysis. Secondary outcomes demonstrated, after adjustment, no difference in the association between a surgical fistula vs graft in any insurance groups; however, patients with Medicare and who were less than 65 years of age were more likely to have a nonradial artery used for anastomosis with an OR of 1.18 (95% CI, 1.04-1.34; P = .011). CONCLUSIONS Certain types of insurance are correlated with being on dialysis at the time of access placement. Although associations were seen between insurance type and surgical access characteristics, these were associations predominantly insignificant when patient demographics and status of dialysis were controlled for. These potential gaps in care represent an area for improvement that deserves further exploration.

Protein-energy wasting (PEW) is an important complication resulting from chronic kidney disease (CKD). Appetite impairment contributes significantly to PEW in these patients, but risk factors associated with having appetite impairment in patients with CKD remain elusive. Patients with an estimated glomerular filtration rate &lt, 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 for ≥2 times at least three months apart were prospectively enrolled during 2017, with their demographic features, comorbidities, anthropometric parameters, physical and performance indices, functional status, frailty, sensory organ integrity, and laboratory data collected. Their appetite status was measured using the Council on Nutrition Appetite Questionnaire (CNAQ). We examined independent determinants of appetite impairment in these CKD patients using multiple regression analyses. Among 78 patients with CKD, 42.3% had CNAQ-identified impaired appetite. Those with an impaired appetite also had poorer physical performance, a higher degree of functional impairment, higher frail severities, lower serum sodium levels, less intact oral cavity, and a trend toward having less intact nasal structures than those without. Multiple regression analyses revealed that a higher frail severity, in the forms of increasing Study of Osteoporotic Fractures (SOF) scores (odds ratio (OR), 2.74, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.15–6.57) and a less intact nasal structure (OR, 0.96, 95% CI, 0.92–0.995) were associated with a higher probability of having an impaired appetite, while higher serum sodium (OR, 0.76, 95% CI, 0.6–0.97) correlated with a lower probability. Based on our findings, in patients with CKD, the severity of frailty, serum sodium, and nasal structural integrity might modify appetite status. Therapies targeting these factors might be beneficial for appetite restoration in patients with CKD.