Dialysis won’t significantly benefit all seniors with end-stage kidney failure who aren’t eligible for transplant Seniors who started dialysis immediately lived just a little more than a week longer However, they spent an additional two weeks in hospitals or care facilities rather than at home TUESDAY, Aug. 20, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Some seniors with end-stage kidney failure who are too sick for a transplant should probably skip dialysis because the health trade-offs aren't worth it, a new study says. Seniors who started dialysis immediately after diagnosis with kidney failure only lived an average of nine days longer than those who either waited at least a month to start or never bothered with the treatment, researchers found.
However, early dialysis patients also spent 13 more days in hospitals or care facilities than those who waited or didn’t receive the treatment, results show. “Is that really what a 75- or 80-year-old patient wants to be doing?” asked lead researcher Maria Montez Rath , a senior research engineer with Stanford Medicine. “The study shows us that if you start dialysis right away, you might survive longer, but you’re going to be spending a lot of time on dialysis, and you’re more likely to need hospitalization,” Montez Rath added in a Stanford news release.
In addition, dialysis comes with side effects like cramping and fatigue, and typically requires a three- to four-hour visit to a clinic three times a week, noted senior researcher D.