THE EFFECT OF HOME-BASED TELE-EXERCISE ON ANEMIA IN PERITONEAL DIALYSIS PATIENTS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL

THE EFFECT OF HOME-BASED TELE-EXERCISE ON ANEMIA IN PERITONEAL DIALYSIS PATIENTS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL

Anemia frequently occurs in patients receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD), affecting their quality of life and increasing the risk of mortality. Although studies demonstrate the effect of intradialytic exercise on improvement of anemia in hemodialysis patients, previous studies have not focused on peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of home-based tele-exercise on anemia indices in patients with PD.

This study is a multi-center, randomized, controlled, 6 months trial. Participants were 48 PD patients with dialysis history of more than 3 months. A synchronized home-based online exercise program was applied 3 sessions a week for intervention group (n=24, 15 male, mean age = 58.4 ± 5.6 years), while the control group (n=24, 17 male, mean age = 61.5 ± 4.2 years) received the usual care and was placed on the waiting list. The primary outcomes were rate of changes of red blood cells (RBC), hemoglobin (HGB) and hematocrit (HCT). The resulted data was analyzed using linear mixed-effect models, adjusting for age, sex, dialysis history and comorbidities.

Statistical analyses revealed that home based tele-exercise resulted in significant improvement in hematological parameters such as HGB (β=2.9, 95% CI: 2.4_3.2), RBC (β=0.58, 95% CI: 0.41_0.75) and HCT (β=5.4, 95% CI: 3.7_5.5). In the control group, there was a non-significant decreasing pattern in RBC (β=-0.3, 95% CI: -0.2_0.3) and HCT (β=-1.1, 95% CI: -0.8_1.7) and a significant decrease in HGB (β=-1.7, 95% CI: -1_-2.5) during the study.

Home-based tele-exercise performed thrice weekly sessions can improve anemia in adult patients receiving PD. This may decrease the worse outcomes like cardiovascular disease and mortality.