Background Data describing inpatient health care utilization in children with nephrotic syndrome and related severe complications are limited. Our goals were to describe the charges, length of stay ...(LOS), and number of hospitalizations among children, adolescents, and young adults with nephrotic syndrome. Study Design A cross-sectional analysis of the Kids' Inpatient Database (KID) database from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). The HCUP-KID is an all-payer database of hospital discharges for children, adolescents, and young adults in the United States compiled every 3 years by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Setting & Participants HCUP-KID data were obtained for the 2006 and 2009 cohort years. We identified patients by searching discharges for nephrotic syndrome International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification diagnosis codes. Predictor Patient demographics, disease complications in children, adolescents, and young adults hospitalized with nephrotic syndrome. Outcome Number of hospitalizations, mean charges, and LOS for children, adolescents, and young adults hospitalized with nephrotic syndrome. Results There were 6,308 hospitalization discharges in children, adolescents, and young adults with a primary or secondary diagnosis of nephrotic syndrome reported by 38 and 44 states in 2006 and 2009, respectively, representing an estimated 9,934 discharges nationally. Nephrotic syndrome resulted in an estimated 48,700 inpatient days and charges totaling $259 million. The mean charge per hospitalization was ∼$26,500 (SE, $1,100) and LOS was 5 days (SE, 0.1). 16% of discharges for nephrotic syndrome had a diagnosis code for at least one severe complication, including thromboembolism (3.6%), septicemia (3.8%), peritonitis (2.6%), pneumonia (5.4%), or diabetes (2.4%). Multivariable analysis showed age 15 years or older, race, higher socioeconomic status, acute renal failure, thromboembolic disease, hypertension, and infections predicted higher mean hospitalization charges. Limitations The HCUP-KID database collects data on a hospitalization level. Consequently, health care utilization on an individual patient level or in the outpatient environment is not possible. Conclusions We present a comprehensive description of inpatient health care utilization in children, adolescents, and young adults with nephrotic syndrome. The complications of nephrotic syndrome, including thromboembolism, infection, and hypertension, contribute significantly to these charges.
Objective To assess depression in children with chronic kidney disease and to determine associations with patient characteristics, intellectual and educational levels, and health-related quality of ...life (HRQoL). Study design Subjects aged 6-17 years from the Chronic Kidney Disease in Children cohort study completed the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), Wechsler Abbreviated Scales of Intelligence, Wechsler Individual Achievement Test-II-Abbreviated, and the Pediatric Inventory of Quality of Life Core Scales 4.0. Regression analyses determined associations of CDI score and depression status with subject characteristics, intellectual and educational levels, and HRQoL. A joint linear mixed model and Weibull model were used to determine the effects of CDI score on longitudinal changes in glomerular filtration rate and time to renal replacement therapy. Results A total of 344 subjects completed the CDI. Eighteen (5%) had elevated depressive symptoms, and another 7 (2%) were being treated for depression. In adjusted analyses, maternal education beyond high school was associated with 5% lower CDI scores (estimate, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.92-0.99). Depression status was associated with lower IQ (99 vs 88; P = .053), lower achievement (95 vs 77.5; P < .05), and lower HRQoL by parent and child reports (effect estimates, −15.48; 95% CI, −28.71 to −2.24 and −18.39; 95% CI, −27.81 to −8.96, respectively). CDI score was not related to change in glomerular filtration rate. Conclusion Children with depression had lower psychoeducational skills and worse HRQoL. Identifying and treating depression should be evaluated as a means of improving the academic performance and HRQoL of children with chronic kidney disease.
Objectives To compare the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of children with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and short stature (SS) with that of children with CKD and normal height (NH), to ...evaluate the impact of catch-up growth and growth hormone (GH) use on HRQoL, and to describe the concordance of perceptions of HRQoL between children with SS and NH and their parents. Study design Four hundred eighty-three children and/or parents enrolled in the multicenter Chronic Kidney Disease in Children study who had completed the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (Version 4.0) on at least 2 Chronic Kidney Disease in Children study visits composed this substudy population. Participants were dichotomized into NH or SS groups. The demographic characteristics that varied at baseline (sex, glomerular filtration rate, and parent education) were controlled for in the main analysis evaluating the impact of catch-up growth and use of GH on HRQoL. Results Multivariate modeling (controlling for confounding variables) revealed a significant association between both catch-up growth and GH use on parent–proxy reports of child physical functioning ( P < .05) and social functioning ( P < .05). Older children with CKD (15-17 years old) had significantly higher ratings than their parents on the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Physical, Emotional, Social, and School Functioning scales compared with younger children (8-14 years old). Conclusion The finding that height gains and GH use are associated with increases in physical and social functioning by parent report provides additional support for interventions to improve height in children with CKD. The importance of evaluating both the parent and child perceptions of HRQoL is supported by our results.
Kidney disease may be associated with a systemic disorder or found in isolation. With advances in the understanding of the pathophysiology of glomerular disorders, the distinction between primary and ...secondary glomerular disease is no longer valid. A wide spectrum of glomerular, vascular, and tubulointerstitial diseases may accompany autoimmune disorders, nephritogenic pharmaceuticals, infections, or complement dysregulation. This article focuses on renal manifestations of systemic diseases such as vasculitis, drug- and infection-related tubulointerstitial injury, and thrombotic disorders.