Missed Hemodialysis Treatments: International Variation, Predictors, and Outcomes in the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS)

Rationale & objective: Missed hemodialysis (HD) treatments not due to hospitalization have been associated with poor clinical outcomes and related in part to treatment nonadherence. Using data from the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS) phase 5 (2012-2015), we report findings from an international investigation of missed treatments among patients prescribed thrice-weekly HD.

Study design: Prospective observational study.

Setting & participants: 8,501 patients participating in DOPPS, on HD therapy for more than 120 days, from 20 countries. Longitudinal and cross-sectional analyses were performed based on the 4,493 patients from countries in which 4-month missed treatment risk was > 5%.

Predictors: The main predictor of patient outcomes was 1 or more missed treatments in the 4 months before DOPPS phase 5 enrollment; predictors of missed treatments included country, patient characteristics, and clinical factors.

Outcomes: Mortality, hospitalization, laboratory measures, patient-reported outcomes, and 4-month missed treatment risk.

Analytical approach: Outcomes were assessed using Cox proportional hazards, logistic, and linear regression, adjusting for case-mix and country.

Results: The 4-month missed treatment risk varied more than 50-fold across all 20 DOPPS countries, ranging from < 1% in Italy and Japan to 24% in the United States. Missed treatments were more likely with younger age, less time on dialysis therapy, shorter HD treatment time, lower Kt/V, longer travel time to HD centers, and more symptoms of depression. Missed treatments were positively associated with all-cause mortality (HR, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.37-2.05), cardiovascular mortality, sudden death/cardiac arrest, hospitalization, serum phosphorus level > 5.5mg/dL, parathyroid hormone level > 300pg/mL, hemoglobin level < 10g/dL, higher kidney disease burden, and worse general and mental health.

Limitations: Possible residual confounding; temporal ambiguity in the cross-sectional analyses.

Conclusions: In the countries with a 4-month missed treatment risk > 5%, HD patients were more likely to die, be hospitalized, and have poorer patient-reported outcomes and laboratory measures when 1 or more missed treatments occurred in a 4-month period. The large variation in missed treatments across 20 nations suggests that their occurrence is potentially modifiable, especially in the United States and other countries in which missed treatment risk is high.