Objective: Implementation of the "Peritoneal Dialysis-First (PD First)" policy, mandating PD as the first modality of renal replacement therapy for end-stage renal disease patients under universal health coverage, leads to a rapid growth of PD cases and centers in Thailand. Since PD-related infection is the Achilles' heel of PD, this retrospective study was conducted to examine the magnitude of PD-related infection in Thailand under the "PD First" policy.
Material and method: All PD centers in Thailand were included in the present study. PD nurse specialists in each center were requested to review medical records of all patients undergoing PD during October 1, 2009 to September 30, 2010 and to submit data to the main investigators.
Results: Eighty-eight percent of all active PD-centers in Thailand (102 out of 116) participated in the present study. One hundred and thirty-three nephrologists and 220 PD nurse specialists served 8,201 PD prevalent patients in these centers (7,925 CAPD and 276 APD). The overall exit-site infection (ESI) rate was 1 episode/37.7 patient-month (0.32 episodes/patient-year) while the overall peritonitis rate was 1 episode/25.5 patient-month (0.47 episode/patient-year).
Conclusion: Despite the rapid growth of PD cases under the limited resource, the PD-related infection rates in Thailand are only small degree behind the goal of Asia-Pacific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) Task Force.