People with end‐stage kidney disease (ESKD) receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD) are physically inactive leading to low physical function and poor health outcomes. Guidelines recommend that nephrologists encourage PD patients to increase their activity levels; however, PD patients are often discouraged from participating in exercise programs because of perceived barriers and a lack of precision about the appropriate exercise regimen. This review suggests ways forward to assist nephrology professionals to encourage PD patients to exercise, instead of creating barriers. The paper draws on the literature in addition to the experience of programs in France, the United States, and Australia to demonstrate the possibilities when considering increasing physical activity in this group.
BackgroundIn 1998, a French survey showed that the referral of patients with chronic kidney disease to a nephrologist was delayed, resulting in many emergency initiations of dialysis. In 2009, the ORACLE study aimed to describe the renal course of dialysis patients from their first nephrology visit to their first dialysis session.MethodsThe ORACLE study was a multicentre retrospective study of all patients who started chronic dialysis. Data were collected at the first nephrology visit and at the first dialysis session.ResultsIn total, 720 patients were included (69 centres). At the first nephrology visit, the mean Cockcroft–Gault (CG) indicator was 31.8 mL/min (22.7 in 1998) and 52.4% of patients (73% in 1998) had a CG <30. The mean time between the first nephrology visit and the first dialysis session was 48 months (35 months in 1998).ConclusionIn 2009, most patients were referred a long time before dialysis initiation, which likely allowed them to benefit from the impact of nephrology care on early outcomes when on dialysis. However, 34.2% of the dialysis sessions were still initiated under emergency conditions.
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