Quality of life data from EQ-5D for evidence-based health service practice in dialysis care

Background Hemodialysis (HD) and peritoneal dialysis (PD) are therapeutic options for patients with end-stage-renal-disease (ESRD), if transplantation is not available. Mortality rates for HD and PD are similar, while PD is generally the less costly alternative. Percentage of HD and PD shows considerable variability between high income countries (for PD from 5-7% in Germany and Switzerland up to 19-24% in the UK and Scandinavia). Patient reported outcomes, such as quality of life (QOL), can provide complementary evidence for planning of patient oriented dialysis services. Profile instruments (e.g. SF36, KDQOL) show no consistent QOL differences between HD and PD. However, single index preference-based QOL measures (such as EQ-5D), may add new information and are useful for later health economic evaluations. We aimed to collect current evidence for QOL of ESRD patients as measured with EQ-5D.