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Polypharmacy is a growing and major public health issue, particularly in the geriatric population. This study aimed to examine the association between polypharmacy and the risk of hospitalization and mortality. We included 3,007,620 elderly individuals aged ≥ 65 years who had at least one routinely-prescribed medication but had no prior hospitalization within a year. The primary exposures of interest were number of daily prescribed medications (1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, and ≥ 11) and presence of polypharmacy (≥ 5 prescription drugs per day). The corresponding comparators were the lowest number of medications (1-2) and absence of polypharmacy. The study outcomes were hospitalization and all-cause death. The median age of participants was 72 years and 39.5% were men. Approximately, 46.6% of participants experienced polypharmacy. Over a median follow-up of 5.0 years, 2,028,062 (67.4%) hospitalizations and 459,076 (15.3%) all-cause deaths were observed. An incrementally higher number of daily prescribed medications was found to be associated with increasingly higher risk for hospitalization and mortality. These associations were consistent across subgroups of age, sex, residential area, and comorbidities. Furthermore, polypharmacy was associated with greater risk of hospitalization and death: adjusted HRs (95% CIs) were 1.18 (1.18-1.19) and 1.25 (1.24-1.25) in the overall and 1.16 (1.16-1.17) and 1.25 (1.24-1.25) in the matched cohorts, respectively. Hence, polypharmacy was associated with a higher risk of hospitalization and all-cause death among elderly individuals.

RATIONALE & OBJECTIVE:Clinical practice guidelines recommend a target blood pressure (BP)

BackgroundArteriovenous fistulas (AVFs) are the preferred vascular access type in most hemodialysis patients. However, the optimal vascular access type in octogenarians and older (≥80 years) hemodialysis patients remains widely debated given their limited life expectancy and lower AVF maturation rates.MethodsAmong incident hemodialysis patients receiving care in a large national dialysis organization during 2007-2011, we examined patterns of vascular access type conversion in 1 year following dialysis initiation in patients 1 year, those with initial AVF/AVG use and placement of AVF from a central venous catheter (CVC) had lower mortality compared with patients with persistent CVC use. When the reference group was changed to patients who had AVF placement from a CVC in the first year of dialysis, those with initial AVF use had similar mortality. A longer duration of CVC use was associated with incrementally worse survival.ConclusionsAmong incident hemodialysis patients ≥80 years of age, placement of an AVF from a CVC within the first year of dialysis had similar mortality compared with initial AVF use. Our data suggest that initial CVC use with later placement of an AVF may be an acceptable option among elderly hemodialysis patients.

ObjectiveTo examine the association between income level and incident chronic kidney disease (CKD) in adults with normal baseline kidney function.Patient and methodsWe studied the association between income level categorized into deciles and incident CKD in a national cohort comprised of 7,405,715 adults who underwent National Health Insurance Service health examinations during January 1, 2009, to December 31, 2015, with baseline estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFRs) ≥60 mL/min/1.73 m2. Incident CKD was defined as de novo development of eGFR

OBJECTIVES:Among kidney disease patients ≥80 years progressing to end-stage renal disease, there is growing interest in conservative nondialytic management approaches. However, among those who have initiated hemodialysis, little is known about the impact of withdrawal from dialysis on mortality, nor the patient characteristics associated with withdrawal from dialysis. STUDY DESIGN:Historical cohort study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS:We examined 133,162 incident hemodialysis patients receiving care within a large national dialysis organization from 2007 to 2011. MEASURES:We identified patients who withdrew from dialysis, either as a listed cause of death or censor reason. Incidence rates and subdistribution hazard ratios for withdrawal from dialysis as well as 4 other censoring reasons were examined across age groups. In addition, demographic and clinical characteristics associated with withdrawal from dialysis therapy among patients ≥80 years old was assessed using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS:Among 17,296 patients aged ≥80 years, 10% of patients withdrew from dialysis. Duration from the last hemodialysis treatment to death was 10 [interquartile range 6-16] days in patients with available data. Withdrawal from dialysis was the second and third most common cause of death among patients aged ≥80 years and

There is accumulating evidence that serum levels of non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) are a more accurate predictor of cardiovascular outcomes when compared with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. However, we recently found that higher serum concentrations of triglycerides are associated with better outcomes in patients undergoing hemodialysis. Therefore, we hypothesized that the association of serum levels of non-HDL-C (which includes triglyceride-rich lipoproteins) with outcomes may also be different in patients undergoing hemodialysis when compared with other patient populations. We studied the association of baseline and time-dependent serum levels of non-HDL-C with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality using Cox proportional hazard regression models in a nationally representative cohort of 50 118 patients undergoing incident hemodialysis from January 1, 2007, to December 31, 2011. In time-dependent models adjusted for case mix and surrogates of malnutrition and inflammation, a graded inverse association between non-HDL-C level and mortality was demonstrated with hazard ratios (95% confidence intervals) of the lowest (

BackgroundElevated serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) has not been associated with better cardiovascular (CV) and all-cause mortality in hemodialysis patients. However, the association between change in HDL over time and mortality has not been fully examined.ObjectiveIn a nationally representative cohort of incident hemodialysis patients who had available HDL data at baseline and 6 months after dialysis initiation, we studied the association of change in HDL-C during the first 6 months of dialysis with all-cause and CV mortality.MethodsAssociations between HDL-C change and mortality were determined in Cox proportional hazard regression models with adjustment for multiple variables.ResultsIn case-mix models, there was a J-shaped association between change in HDL-C and mortality, such that quartiles 1 (

BACKGROUND/AIMS:Ultrafiltration rate (UFR) appears to be associated with mortality in prevalent hemodialysis (HD) patients. However, the association of UFR with mortality in incident HD patients remains unknown. METHODS:We examined a US cohort of 110,880 patients who initiated HD from 2007 to 2011. Baseline UFR was divided into 5 groups (

BackgroundThe population of elderly end-stage renal disease patients initiating dialysis is rapidly growing. Although longer treatment is supposed to benefit for hemodialysis (HD) patients through more solute clearance and slower fluid removal, it is not yet clear how treatment session length affects mortality risk in octogenarians and nonagenarians.MethodsIn a cohort of 112,026 incident HD patients between 2007 and 2011, we examined the association of treatment session length with all-cause mortality, adjusting for demographics and comorbid conditions. We also used restricted spline functions for age to evaluate continuous changes in the association of short (< 210 min) and extended (≥240 min) HD treatment (vs. 210 to < 240 min) with all-cause mortality over continuous age.ResultsDuring the first 91 days of dialysis, patients aged ≥80 years tended to have the lowest treatment session length (median [interquartile range] 211 [193-230] min, r > 0.5). Longer treatment was associated with better survival in patients < 65 and 65 to < 80 years but not in octogenarians/nonagenarians. The association of extended treatment (≥240 min) with better survival was attenuated across age and not significant among patients aged ≥80 years with a hazard ratio of 1.10 (95% CI 0.99-1.20). Shorter treatment sessions (< 210 min) was associated with higher mortality across all age groups.ConclusionExtended HD was not associated with lower mortality among octogenarians and nonagenarians, while it was associated with better survival among younger patients. Further studies are needed to determine the optimal treatment session length in elderly incident HD patients.

BackgroundIncident hemodialysis patients may experience rapid weight loss in the first few months of starting dialysis. However, trends in weight changes over time and their associations with survival have not yet been characterized in this population.MethodsIn a large contemporary US cohort of 58 106 patients who initiated hemodialysis during 1 January 2007-31 December 2011 and survived the first year of dialysis, we observed trends in weight changes during the first year of treatment and then examined the association of post-dialysis weight changes with all-cause mortality.ResultsPatients' post-dialysis weights rapidly decreased and reached a nadir at the 5th month of dialysis with an average decline of 2% from baseline, whereas obese patients (body mass index ≥30 kg/m 2 ) did not reach a nadir and lost ∼3.8% of their weight by the 12th month. Compared with the reference group (-2 to 2% changes in weight), the death hazard ratios (HRs) of patients with -6 to -2% and greater than or equal to -6% weight loss during the first 5 months were 1.08 (95% confidence interval, 1.02-1.14) and 1.14 (1.07-1.22), respectively. Moreover, the death HRs with 2-6% and ≥6% weight gain during the 5th to 12th months were 0.91 (0.85-0.97) and 0.92 (0.86-0.99), respectively.ConclusionsIn patients who survive the first year of hemodialysis, a decline in post-dialysis weight is observed and reaches a nadir at the 5th month. An incrementally larger weight loss during the first 12 months is associated with higher death risk, whereas weight gain is associated with greater survival during the 5th to 12th month but not in the first 5 months of dialysis therapy.

Background and objectivesElevated serum triglyceride/HDL cholesterol (TG/HDL-C) ratio has been identified as a risk factor for cardiovascular (CV) disease and mortality in the general population. However, the association of this important clinical index with mortality has not been fully evaluated in patients with ESRD on maintenance hemodialysis (MHD). We hypothesized that the association of serum TG/HDL-C ratio with all-cause and CV mortality in patients with ESRD on MHD is different from the general population.Design, setting, participants, & measurementsWe studied the association of serum TG/HDL-C ratio with all-cause and CV mortality in a nationally representative cohort of 50,673 patients on incident hemodialysis between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2011. Association of baseline and time-varying TG/HDL-C ratios with mortality was assessed using Cox proportional hazard regression models, with adjustment for multiple variables, including statin therapy.ResultsDuring the median follow-up of 19 months (interquartile range, 11-32 months), 12,778 all-cause deaths and 4541 CV deaths occurred, respectively. We found that the 10th decile group (reference: sixth deciles of TG/HDL-C ratios) had significantly lower risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio, 0.91 [95% confidence interval, 0.83 to 0.99] in baseline and 0.86 [95% confidence interval, 0.79 to 0.94] in time-varying models) and CV mortality (hazard ratio, 0.83 [95% confidence interval, 0.72 to 0.96] in baseline and 0.77 [95% confidence interval, 0.66 to 0.90] in time-varying models). These associations remained consistent and significant across various subgroups.ConclusionsContrary to the general population, elevated TG/HDL-C ratio was associated with better CV and overall survival in patients on hemodialysis. Our findings provide further support that the nature of CV disease and mortality in patients with ESRD is unique and distinct from other patient populations. Hence, it is vital that future studies focus on identifying risk factors unique to patients on MHD and decipher the underlying mechanisms responsible for poor outcomes in patients with ESRD.

BackgroundHigher serum ferritin levels may be influenced by iron use and inflammation, and are associated with higher mortality in hemodialysis (HD) patients. We hypothesized that a major rise in serum ferritin is associated with a higher risk of mortality, irrespective of baseline serum ferritin in incident HD patients.MethodsIn a cohort of 93,979 incident HD patients between 2007 and 2011, we examined the association of change in serum ferritin from the baseline patient quarter (first 91 days from dialysis start) to the subsequent quarter with mortality. Multivariable adjustments were done for case-mix and markers of the malnutrition, and inflammation complex and intravenous iron dose. Change in serum ferritin was stratified into 5 groups: