Kidney & Blood Pressure Research (Oct 2016)

Frailty in Chinese Peritoneal Dialysis Patients: Prevalence and Prognostic Significance

  • Jack Kit-Chung Ng,
  • Bonnie Ching-Ha Kwan,
  • Kai-Ming Chow,
  • Phyllis Mei-Shan Cheng,
  • Man-Ching Law,
  • Wing-Fai Pang,
  • Chi-Bon Leung,
  • Philip Kam-Tao Li,
  • Cheuk-Chun Szeto

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1159/000450563
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 41, no. 6
pp. 736 – 745

Abstract

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Background/Aims: Previous studies showed that frailty is prevalent in both pre-dialysis and dialysis patients. However, the prevalence and prognostic implication of frailty in Chinese peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients remain unknown. Methods: We used a validated questionnaire to determine the Frailty Score of 193 unselected prevalent PD patients. All patients were then followed for 2 years for their need of hospitalization and mortality. Results: Amongst the 193 patients, 134 (69.4%) met the criteria of being frail. Frailty Score significantly correlated with Charlson's comorbidity score (r = 0.40, p Conclusions: Frailty is prevalent among Chinese PD patients. Frail PD patients have a high risk of requiring hospitalization and their hospital stay tends to be prolonged. Early identification may allow timely intervention to prevent adverse health outcomes in this group of patients.

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