ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The prevalence of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) treated with renal dialysis is poorly known in France because there is no national registry of dialysis patients. The specific aims of this study are to determine the total number of patients treated with renal dialysis and their social, demographic, and clinical characteristics, as well as define the overall care they received. METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional descriptive study from June 2 to June 8, 2003, in all renal dialysis units (including pediatric units) by including all patients residing in France with ESRD who were dialyzed during that week, irrespective of age or the treatment they received. We gathered sociodemographic (age, sex, place of residence, and occupation) and clinical data (year they entered dialysis therapy, initial renal disease, comorbidities, and associated handicaps) and information concerning their overall treatment plan (waiting list for kidney transplant, therapeutic regimen, and dialysis technique used). RESULTS: A total of 30,882 patients residing in France were treated with renal dialysis. The unadjusted prevalence of dialysis was 513.1 patients per million population (pmp); 498.2 pmp in metropolitan France and 1,035.7 pmp in the overseas territories. Clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of patients and their therapeutic regimens were different in metropolitan France and the overseas territories. CONCLUSION: This study constitutes the first comprehensive inventory of dialysis therapy in France, where the prevalence of ESRD is among the highest in the world.