Home Dialysis News

The Conferences Committee for the 47th ANNA National Symposium, the ANNA Research Committee, and the ANNA Specialty Practice Leaders have accepted the following abstract submitted for the 2016 National Symposium in Louisville, KY.

In the United States, 421,349 patients—64% of all people with end-stage renal disease (ESRD)—are receiving hemodialysis therapy in an outpatient facility.1 The annual mortality rate for hemodialysis patients is 17.2%, with half from cardiovascular causes.1 Sudden cardiac death, the leading cause of death in hemodialysis patients, accounts for death in up to one-quarter of hemodialysis patients.2

Economist Alex Brill of Matrix Global Advisors released a report March 3 demonstrating how federal policies limit patient access to home dialysis. Brill discussed the report in more detail, and included some steps to overcome the barriers to home dialysis care.

Baxter International Inc. has enrolled the first patient in a U.S. clinical trial for VIVIA, an investigational home hemodialysis system the company is developing with DEKA Research & Development Corporation. The hemodialysis machine was approved for sale in Europe in 2013.

Current federal policies limit patient access to home dialysis, according to a report released today by economist Alex Brill of Matrix Global Advisors (MGA). As a result of policy barriers, Brill finds, a key segment of the growing population of patients who have End Stage Renal Disease  miss out on the important health and lifestyle benefits of home dialysis, according to the report. Brill, formerly chief economist to the House Ways & Means Committee, also finds that innovation in the home dialysis market may not reach patients if barriers cannot be addressed.

Introduction

There are substantial racial/ethnic differences in use of home dialysis and the health outcomes of U.S. patients who use it, according to a study appearing in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN).

Tell someone they have two treatment plans for their heart disease, lung cancer, or diabetes. For years, close to 90% have chosen Treatment A. Treatment B is also available, and has been successful. But few people have selected it, according to the data. You hear some information about it, but the people you consult with seem to have more confidence in Treatment A. And you can start the therapy immediately.

A Nov. 20 article written by ProPublica journalist Alec MacGillis attempts to explain why economically depressed regions of the United States that rely on Democrat supported safety-net programs are voting increasingly for Republicans who are opposed to the programs. The article was featured in the New York Times.