In a retrospective study of adults initiating kidney failure treatment during 2011-2018, disparities in kidney transplantation by race were highest among patients age 22-44 years of age. Within this age group, kidney failure was treated by kidney transplantation among 10.9% of White patients but only 1.8% of Black and 4.4% of Hispanic patients.
Research has shown wide racial/ethnic disparities in use of kidney transplantation and home dialysis, yet how age interacts with these disparities is unknown. In a study published in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases (AJKD) , researcherd compared use of kidney replacement therapies between racial/ethnic groups among patients with incident kidney failure, within age strata, using registry data for 830,402 US adults (>21 years) during 2011- 2018. Absolute disparities in transplantation and home dialysis (outcomes measured at 90 days after treatment initiation) were most pronounced among patients aged 22-44. After adjusting for numerous patient-level factors, the largest disparities were observed for transplantation among adults age 22-44. These findings suggest that needs of younger adults should be emphasized in designing interventions to reduce disparities in access to preferred kidney replacement therapies.
TITLE: Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Kidney Replacement Therapies Among Adults With Kidney Failure: An Observational Study of Variation by Patient Age
AUTHORS: Adam S. Wilk, PhD, Janet R. Cummings, PhD, Laura C. Plantinga, PhD, Harold A. Franch, MD, Janice P. Lea, MD, and Rachel E. Patzer, PhD, MPH
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1053/j.ajkd.2021.12.012
American Journal of Kidney Diseases