Practice of dialysis access interventional nephrology procedures in the Asia-Pacific region: Getting lay of the land.

AIM: This cross-sectional survey aimed to determine the prevalence of Interventional Nephrology (IN) practice amongst nephrologists in the Asia-Pacific Region (APR), specifically related to dialysis access (DA). METHODS: The Association of VA and intervenTionAl Renal physicians (AVATAR) Foundation from India conducted a multinational online survey amongst nephrologists from the Asia-Pacific to determine the practice of IN in the planning, creation, and management of dialysis access. The treatment modalities, manpower and equipment availability, monthly cost of treatment, specifics of dialysis access interventions, and challenges in the training and practice of IN by nephrologists were included in the survey. RESULTS: Twenty-one countries from the APR participated in the survey. Nephrologists from 18 (85.7%) countries reported performing at least one of the basic dialysis access-related IN procedures, primarily the placement of non-tunnelled central catheters (n-TCC; 71.5%). Only 10 countries (47.6%) reported having an average of <4% of nephrologists performing any of the advanced IN access procedures, the most common being the placement of a peritoneal dialysis (PD) catheter (20%). Lack of formal training (57.14%), time (42.8%), incentive (38%), institutional support (38%), medico-legal protection (28.6%), and prohibitive cost (23.8%) were the main challenges to practice IN. The primary obstacles to implementing the IN training were a lack of funding and skilled personnel. CONCLUSION: The practice of dialysis access-related IN in APR is inadequate, mostly due to a lack of training, backup support, and economic constraints, whereas training in access-related IN is constrained by a lack of a skilled workforce and finances.

Post renal transplant polycythemia and treatment: A single center study.

OBJECTIVE: To calculate the incidence of post-transplant erythrocytosis, and to assess the response to treatment. METHODS: The prospective study was conducted from April 2016 to April 2018 at the Department of Nephrology, Bahria International Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan, and comprised patients undergoing renal transplantation who were evaluated and followed up for 12 months. Patients having haemoglobin levels ≥17gm/dl were labelled as having polycythemia. Data was analysed using SPSS 21. RESULTS: Of the 94 total patients, 69(73.4%) were enrolled. During follow-up, 2(2.9%) of them died, and, thus, the final sample stood at 67(71.3%); 57 (85%) males and 10(15%) females. The mean age of the sample was 32.6±8.8 years. Overall, 19(28.4%) patients developed polycythemia and they were either given angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers. Of these 19 patients, 11(57.8 %) responded to the treatment, while 8(42.1%) required phlebotomy. Further, 3(15.7%) patients required one phlebotomy, while 5(26.3%) who had glomerular filtration rate >30% had to have repeated phlebotomy. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of post-transplant erythrocytosis was significantly high at 28.4%.