The clinical and epidemiological aspects of vascular mortality in chronic peritoneal dialysis patients

This article reviews the clinical aspects of and epidemiological links between vascular mortality and the dialysis population, and emphasizes areas that warrant further clarification. In particular, we highlight potential pitfalls in interpretation of published observational and clinical studies, notably some of the issues related to reverse epidemiology of risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Recent published data from our own center in the Prince of Wales Hospital relating to the significance of residual renal function, inflammation, valvular calcification, as well as left ventricular hypertrophy were highlighted. Actions are needed to tackle both the traditional and the nontraditional factors for cardiovascular disease in order to treat this problem causing the highest mortality in peritoneal dialysis patients.