THURSDAY, Jan. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Home-based dialysis is an option for patients who've suffered a kidney transplant failure, researchers say.
In a new study, researchers evaluated the impact that dialysis -- both clinic-based and home-based -- had on the survival of 2,110 adult Canadian patients who had to return to dialysis after kidney transplant failure.
Death rates were similar for both groups of patients during the initial two-year period, during the period after the first two years, and overall, the investigators found.
The study findings are scheduled for publication in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
The researchers pointed out that although there are many advantages to home-based dialysis -- including avoiding hospital visits several times a week -- very few patients in the United States and Canada returning to dialysis after transplant failure choose that option.
"It is important to empower patients who have kidney transplant failure to realize that despite the severe disappointment of returning to dialysis, they still have many options for dialysis therapy, which include opportunities for home-based therapy," study author Dr. Jeffrey Perl, of St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto, said in a journal news release.
"I hope this research helps guide patients and the health care professionals treating them to make informed decisions regarding dialysis modality decisions, namely that peritoneal [home-based] dialysis is as effective a therapy as hemodialysis [clinic-based] in patients returning to dialysis after kidney transplant failure."
More information
The National Kidney Foundation has more about dialysis.