Six-minute walk distance predicts hospitalization in elderly peritoneal dialysis patients: a single-center prospective cohort study

Abstract

Background: The risk of adverse events associated with peritoneal dialysis (PD) in elderly patients has not been thoroughly investigated. The purpose of this study was to assess the association between physical function and hospitalization in elderly PD patients. Methods: This is a single-center prospective observational cohort study. Thirty-three aged patients (74.8 ± 5.9 years) participated in a 6-min walk distance, short physical performance battery (SPPB), lower extremity muscle strength, and 10-m walk speed. All subjects were followed until hospitalization to the end of the follow-up period. Results: The 6-min walk distance was 332 ± 112.5 m; SPPB was 11 (8.3–12) points; the lower extremity muscle strength was 36.6 ± 9.6%; 10-m walk speed was 1.1± 0.2 m/s. During the follow-up, 19 patients (57.5%) were hospitalized. In the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and log-rank test, a lower 6-min walk distance and PD vintage were significantly associated with hospitalization (p<0.05). After adjustment for PD vintage in Cox proportional analysis, the 6-min walk distance remained associated with hospitalization (95% confidence interval, 0.98–0.99). Conclusion: Lower exercise tolerance assessed by the 6-min walk distance was significantly associated with hospitalization in elderly PD patients. Our findings indicate that measurement and intervention of exercise intolerance are essential to predict the clinical outcomes of elderly PD patients. Trial registration: This study was prospectively registered at inception in the UMIN Clinical Trials Registry under identification number UMIN000038405.