In this study we analyze the impact of the patient's socioeconomic status (SES) and the distance from the patient's home to the dialysis center (DPH-DC), classified as < or =300 km or >300 km, on the patient and technique survival of 59 patients starting chronic peritoneal dialysis (CPD) between May 1983 and January 2004 at a single center in Uruguay. SES was established using Graffar's method. Mean duration of CPD was 38.1+/-26.0 months. Mean age at the start of CPD was 8.4+/-5.2 years. Overall patient and technique survival at 5 years were 86.4% and 77.9%, respectively. Twenty (33.8%) patients were transferred to hemodialysis. Eight (13.5%) patients died. The incidence of peritonitis was one episode every 9.1 months. There was no statistically significant difference in patient and technique survival between the patients in the low and high SES groups (p=0.72 and 0.99, respectively), and between those in the two DPH-DC groups, (p=0.22 and p=0.99, respectively). Logistic regression analysis confirmed low SES and DPH-DC >300 km are not predictors of patient death (p=0.79 and p=0.09, respectively) or technical failure (p=0.35 and p=0.15, respectively). No SES- and DPH-DC-related statistically significant differences were found in patient and technique survival.