Comparison of Outcomes among Chronic Kidney Disease V Patients with COVID-19 at the National Kidney and Transplant Institute: A Retrospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: There is very little published data on outcomes of COVID-19 among chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. We compared the outcomes of COVID-19 in a tertiary care renal hospital among CKD V patients on hemodialysis (HD), peritoneal dialysis (PD), and dialysis initiation, in terms of duration of hospitalization, in-patient mortality, and 30-day mortality. METHODS: A total of 436 CKD V patients, on either HD, PD, or dialysis initiation, with COVID-19 who were admitted at the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) from March 13, 2020, to August 31, 2020, were included. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis was performed. Comparison of probability of mortality by group was performed using Log-Rank test. p values ≤0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Among 436 CKD V patients, 298 (68%) were on HD, 103 (24%) were on PD, and 35 (8%) required dialysis initiation. Overall in-hospital mortality was 34%; 38% were on HD, 20% on PD, and 37% on dialysis initiation. Total 30-day mortality was 27%; 32% were on HD, 26% on PD, and 16% on dialysis initiation. Median follow-up was 24 days. Among the 137 deaths recorded, total median time to death was 10 days; 8.5 days, 15.5 days, and 9 days for HD, PD, and dialysis initiation groups, respectively. Probability of mortality was significantly higher in HD patients versus PD patients (p < 0.00001) and in the dialysis initiation group compared to PD patients (p=0.0234). Mortality probability, however, was not significantly different in HD patients versus the dialysis initiation group (p=0.63). CONCLUSION: Among CKD V patients diagnosed with COVID-19 at the NKTI, those on HD and on dialysis initiation had significantly higher in-hospital and 30-day mortality, compared to patients on PD.