Results of the international DOPPS hemodialysis study in Japan

Abstract

The Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Pattern Study (DOPPS) is an international, observational study of treatment conditions and medical outcomes in hemodialysis (HD) patients (Pts). Prospective sampling has yielded long-term observational data from randomly selected groups of pts receiving HD at representative, randomly selected HD units in each country. We analyzed the associations between individual treatment characteristics to improve understanding of the factors influencing morbidity and mortality for better patient care and improvements in the quality of life for HD pts.
Japanese HD pts showed excellent survival compared with that in other DOPPS countries, and it was suggested that higher blood flow rates, increases in dialyzer surface area, or elongation of treatment time provide opportunities to increase dialysis dose with further improvement of survival. Increasing EPO dose and changing the EPO administration route could improve hematocrit level.
The present evaluation of treatments and patient mix in Japan in comparison with other DOPPS data increases our understanding of the possibilities to improve hemodialysis therapy worldwide.