“Our findings show we need to work harder to reduce barriers to home dialysis,” -Dr. Gregory HundemerIndividuals with kidney failure who have less education, who are unemployed or retired, or who are living alone at home or in a long-term residence are more likely to start hemodialysis than peritoneal dialysis, according to a study published in Peritoneal Dialysis International. 

Both kinds of dialysis are effective, but peritoneal dialysis is more portable and can be done at home, while hemodialysis usually requires three four-hour hospital visits a week. Patients are taught about both options, and decide with their kidney specialist which fits their life better. 

To understand some of the social factors contributing to this decision, Dr. Gregory Hundemer looked at data from 981 patients from The Ottawa Hospital who started dialysis between 2010 and 2021. The results reinforce known barriers to peritoneal dialysis, such as not having family at home to help and overly complicated education materials. 

“Our findings show we need to work harder to reduce barriers to home dialysis,” said Dr. Hundemer, nephrologist and Lorna Jocelyn Wood Chair for Kidney Research at The Ottawa Hospital, and assistant professor at the University of Ottawa.

Authors: Susan J Thanabalasingam, Ayub Akbari, Manish M Sood, Pierre A Brown, Christine A White, Danielle Moorman, Maria Salman, Sriram Sriperumbuduri and Gregory L Hundemer

Funding: This study was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and The Ottawa Hospital Foundation (through the Jindal Research Chair for the Prevention of Kidney Disease and the Lorna Jocelyn Wood Chair for Kidney Research).

The Ottawa Hospital is a leading academic health, research and learning hospital proudly affiliated with the University of Ottawa and supported by The Ottawa Hospital Foundation.