ASN: Telenephrology improves visit compliance in CKD

(HealthDay)—For patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), telenephrology may be superior to in-person care for visit compliance, and is not inferior to in-person care for management of CKD, according to a study presented at the American Society of Nephrology's Kidney Week 2015, held from Nov. 3 to 8 in San Diego.

Rajeev Rohatgi, M.D., from the James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in Bronx, N.Y., and colleagues conducted a retrospective observational study to examine the clinical outcome of CKD patients enrolled in telenephrology clinic (117 patients) and the Bronx Veterans Affairs nephrology clinic (121 patients).

The researchers found that 53.1 percent of scheduled visits of Hudson Valley VAMC patients to the Bronx VAMC renal clinic were cancelled or "no-shows." After institution of telenephrology, this was reduced to 29.2 percent (P < 0.001). The telenephrology group had a greater frequency of attending appointments versus the Bronx VA cohort (70.8 versus 61.8 percent), which was driven by an increased frequency of cancelled visits in the Bronx VA group versus the telenephrology group (27.9 versus 15.8 percent). The incidence of a composite outcome was similar between the groups; the change in blood pressure and estimated glomerular filtration rate from baseline to one year was also similar between the groups.

"These data imply that remote delivery of care via telenephrology has the potential to deliver equitable, patient-centered care to a geographically diverse patient population," Rohatgi said in a statement.

Copyright © 2015 HealthDay. All rights reserved.