Hypertension is the most prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD) among dialysis patients worldwide, according to a recent study presented at Kidney Week, the annual meeting of the American Society of Nephrology, held from October 23 to 27 in San Diego.
The study, led by Belen Alejos, Ph.D., from Fresenius Medical Care in Bad Homburg, Germany, analyzed data from 543,169 dialysis patients across 40 countries on six continents. This research utilized information from the Apollo Dial DB, a global dialysis database, covering the period from January 2018 to March 2021.
The findings revealed that 79 percent of patients reported at least one cardiovascular condition, with hypertension affecting 73.6 percent of them. The study also highlighted differences in CVD prevalence based on age and sex. Atherosclerotic heart disease was noted in 19.0 percent of patients, with its prevalence rising significantly with age—from 9.9 percent among those aged 18 to 44 years to 24.1 percent in patients aged 75 and older. Additionally, this condition was more common in men (20.3 percent) than in women (17.2 percent). A similar trend was observed for congestive heart failure, which affected 17.5 percent overall and increased with age.
Other less common conditions included peripheral vascular disease (11.5 percent), cardiomyopathy (7.3 percent), and cardiac dysrhythmias (7.1 percent). These conditions were also more prevalent in older age groups and among men.
The authors concluded, “Hypertension is the most common CVD comorbidity among dialysis patients globally, followed by atherosclerotic heart disease and congestive heart failure. Future analyses are needed to explore regional differences, which could inform tailored management strategies.”
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