Selected primary care issues and comorbidities in children who are on maintenance dialysis: a review for the pediatric nephrologist

Abstract

Ten-year survival of all children who initiate dialysis at any age now approaches 70%, and in the older child this number is closer to 80%. These children will live with chronic kidney disease and its myriad of associated comorbidities during and throughout their childhood. Their care is complex and requires both teamwork and careful attention paid to maintaining lines of communication among patient, family, and both the facility-based nephrology team and caregivers who are outside the hospital setting. Irrespective of their need for dialysis, children with ESRD deserve and require developmentally appropriate care and anticipatory guidance with respect to primary care issues of childhood. The child who is on dialysis often is cared for solely or in large part by a nephrology service, therefore this review discusses issues that are particularly important to pediatric nephrologists in relation to selected primary care issues and comorbidities for the child who is on dialysis, with an emphasis on medical and psychosocial issues, and with particular weight placed on issues that are pertinent to the adolescent dialysis patient.