Background: The extent and the distribution of end stage kidney disease (ESKD) in Libya have not been reported despite provision of dialysis over 4 decades. The aim of this thesis is to develop the first comprehensive description of the epidemiology of dialysis-treated ESKD in adults in Libya as well as to assess the outcomes of this treatment. Methods: A structured interview regarding dialysis provision and infection control measures was conducted with the medical directors of all 40 dialysis centres and 28 centres were visited. In the same time demographic and clinical data were obtained regarding all adult patients treated at all maintenance dialysis facilities in Libya from May to August 2009. Additional information about the patterns of vascular access used for haemodialysis (HD) as well as prevalence and incidence of hepatitis Band/or C infection was collected and analysed. Subsequently data were collected prospectively from September 2009 to August 2010. Results: There were 40 functioning maintenance dialysis centres in Libya (one of them was serving children only). The total number of adult patients was 2417. The prevalence rate of ESKD treated by dialysis was 624 per million population. Most dialysis units were located in the northern part of the country and only 12.5% were free standing units. Only three centres offered peritoneal dialysis. There were 192 HD rooms. They hosted 713 functioning HD stations, giving a ratio of one machine to 3.4 patients. Nephrologist/internist to patient ratio was 1:40 and nurse to patient ratio was 1:3.7. There was wide variation in monitoring of dialysis patients with dialysis adequacy assessed only in a minority. 85% of prevalent patients were aged <65 years and 58% were male. The prevalence of ESKD varied considerably with age with a peak at 55-64 years (2475 pmp for males; 2197 pmp for females). The annual incidence rate was 282 pmp with some regional variation and a substantially higher rate in the South (617 pmp). The most common cause of ESKD among prevalent and incident patients was diabetes. Other important causes were glomerulonephritis, hypertensive nephropathy and congenital or hereditary diseases. During one year follow- up, 458 deaths occurred, (crude annual mortality rate of 21.2%). Of these, 3 1 % were due to ischaemic heart disease, 16% cerebrovascular accidents and 16% due to infection. Annual mortality rate was 0-70% in different dialysis centres. Best survival was in age group 25-34 years. Binary logistic regression analysis identified age at onset of dialysis, physical dependency, diabetes and predialysis urea as independent determinants of increased mortality. Of all dialysis- treated patients, 34.9% were sero-positive for HBV and/or HCV (anti-HCV positive 31.1%; HBsAg positive 2.6%; both positive \.2%). The prevalence of HBV±HCV infection varied widely between HD centres from 0% to 75.9%. Sero-positive patients were younger, had longer time on dialysis and more previous blood transfusions. Prospective follow-up revealed an incidence ofsero-conversion of7.7% during 1 year (7.1% HCV; 0.6% HBV). Wide variation in rates of newly acquired infections was observed between dialysis centres. Duration of dialysis, history of previous renal transplant and history of receiving HD in another centre in Libya were significantly associated with sero-conversion. The majority of HD- treated patients (91.9%; n=1573) were using permanent vascular access in the form of arteriovenous fistula or arteriovenous graft. Patients with permanent vascular access were more likely to be male and less likely to be diabetic. Most patients had commenced HD using a temporary central venous catheter (91.8%). Vascular access- related complications were: thrombosis (46.7%), aneurysm (22.6%), infection (11.5%) and haemorrhage (10.2%). Hospitalisation for VA related complications was reported by 31.4%. Conclusion: ESKD in Libya is a major health problem where the incidence rate is among the highest in the world. Despite rapid expansion of dialysis services throughout the country, this thesis has identified that many aspects of dialysis provision are suboptimal and that outcomes are relatively poor. We have identified several major challenges to improving the quality of dialysis provision including lack of dialysis practice guidelines, absence of auditing and quality control and limited access to kidney transplantation. As Libya reorganises its health services in the post-conflict period it is hoped that this study will be the first step in establishing a renal registry and that the areas of concern highlighted will prompt the implementation of national clinical practice guidelines for dialysis.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:594214 |
| Date | January 2013 |
| Creators | Alashek, Wiam Abdulaziz |
| Publisher | University of Nottingham |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/28388/ |
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