Correction to: Use of the KDQOL-36™ for assessment of health-related quality of life among dialysis patients in the United States.

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported an error in Figs. 3 and S3.

Response to correspondence from Hays and colleagues concerning our paper entitled, use of the KDQOL-36™ for assessment of health-related quality of life among dialysis patients in the United States.

In their correspondence, Hays et al. raise two main critiques of our recently published article entitled "Use of the KDQOL-36™ for assessment of health-related quality of life among dialysis patients in the United States." First, Hays et al.

Use of the KDQOL-36™ for assessment of health-related quality of life among dialysis patients in the United States.

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is a key outcome for dialysis patients, and its assessment is mandated by the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. The Kidney Disease Quality of Life (KDQOL-36™) survey is widely used for this assessment. KDQOL-36™ completion rates, and the distributions of scores and item responses, have not been examined in a large, nationally representative cohort of dialysis patients.

To eat or not to eat-international experiences with eating during hemodialysis treatment.

Providing food or nutrition supplements during hemodialysis (HD) may be associated with improved nutritional status and reduced mortality; however, despite these potential benefits, eating practices vary across countries, regions, and clinics. Understanding present clinic practices and clinician experiences with eating during HD may help outline best practices in this controversial area. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine clinical practices and experiences related to eating during HD treatment.

Serum creatinine as a marker of muscle mass in chronic kidney disease: results of a cross-sectional study and review of literature.

Background: Higher muscle mass is associated with better outcomes and longevity in patients with chronic disease states. Imaging studies such as dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) are among the gold standard methods for assessing body fat and lean body mass (LBM), approximately half of which is comprised of skeletal muscle mass. Elaborate imaging devices, however, are not commonly available in routine clinical practice and therefore easily accessible and cost-effective, but reliable muscle mass biomarkers are needed.

The IMPACT (Incident Management of Patients, Actions Centered on Treatment) program: a quality improvement approach for caring for patients initiating long-term hemodialysis.

Background: Patients beginning dialysis therapy are at risk of death and illness. The IMPACT (Incident Management of Patients, Actions Centered on Treatment) quality improvement program was developed to improve incident hemodialysis patient outcomes through standardized care.

Study Design: Quality improvement report.

Novel equations to estimate lean body mass in maintenance hemodialysis patients.

Background: Lean body mass (LBM) is an important nutritional measure representing muscle mass and somatic protein in hemodialysis patients, for whom we developed and tested equations to estimate LBM.

Study Design: A study of diagnostic test accuracy.

Setting & Participants: The development cohort included 118 hemodialysis patients with LBM measured using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) and near-infrared (NIR) interactance.

Comparing body composition assessment tests in long-term hemodialysis patients.

Background: Protein-energy wasting is common in chronic kidney disease and is associated with decreases in body muscle and fat stores and poor outcomes. The accuracy and reliability of field methods to measure body composition is unknown in this population.

Study Design: Cross-sectional observational study.

American Dietetic Association and the National Kidney Foundation Standards of Practice and Standards of Professional Performance for registered dietitians (generalist, specialty, and advanced) in nephrology care.

The American Dietetic Association (ADA) Renal Dietitians Practice Group (RPG) and the National Kidney Foundation Council on Renal Nutrition (NKF CRN), under the guidance of the ADA Quality Management Committee and Scope of Dietetics Practice Framework Sub-Committee, have developed the Standards of Practice (SOP) and Standards of Professional Performance (SOPP) for Registered Dietitians (Generalist, Specialty, and Advanced) in Nephrology Care (Supplementary Figures 1, 2, and 3 are available only online at www.jrnjournal.org).

Association of serum total iron-binding capacity and its changes over time with nutritional and clinical outcomes in hemodialysis patients.

Serum transferrin, estimated by total iron-binding capacity (TIBC), may be a marker of protein-energy wasting (PEW) in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients. We hypothesized that low TIBC or its fall over time is associated with poor clinical outcomes. In 807 MHD patients in a prospective 5-year cohort, associations of TIBC and its changes over time with outcomes were examined after adjustment for case-mix and markers of iron stores and malnutrition-inflammation including serum interleukin-6, iron and ferritin.

Burnt-out diabetes: impact of chronic kidney disease progression on the natural course of diabetes mellitus.

Many individuals with diabetic nephropathy, the leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the United States, progress to stage 5 of CKD and undergo maintenance dialysis treatment. Recent data indicate that in up to one third of diabetic dialysis patients with a presumptive diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy, glycemic control improves spontaneously with the progression of CKD, loss of residual renal function, and the initiation of dialysis therapy, leading to normal-to-low hemoglobin A1c (<6%) and glucose levels, requiring cessation of insulin or other anti-diabetic medications. Potential contributors to this so-called "burnt-out diabetes" include decreased renal and hepatic insulin clearance, a decline in renal gluconeogenesis, deficient catecholamine release, diminished food intake (because of anorexia or diabetic gastroparesis), protein-energy wasting (with resultant loss of weight and body fat), and the hypoglycemic effects of dialysis treatment.

Association of Malnutrition-Inflammation Score with quality of life and mortality in hemodialysis patients: a 5-year prospective cohort study.

Background: The Malnutrition-Inflammation Score (MIS), an inexpensive and easy-to-assess score of 0 to 30 to examine protein-energy wasting (PEW) and inflammation, includes 7 components of the Subjective Global Assessment, body mass index, and serum albumin and transferrin concentrations. We hypothesized that MIS risk stratification of hemodialysis (HD) patients in predicting outcomes is better than its components or laboratory markers of inflammation.

Study Design: 5-Year cohort study.

Impact of kidney bone disease and its management on survival of patients on dialysis.

Despite the enormous cardiovascular disease epidemic and poor survival among individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD), traditional risk factors such as hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, and obesity appear not as relevant as was previously thought, nor would their management improve survival in patients with CKD who are undergoing dialysis. On the contrary, kidney disease wasting (KDW) (also known as the malnutrition-inflammation complex), renal anemia, and kidney bone disease (KBD) appear to be the 3 most important nontraditional risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease in CKD. KBD-associated hyperparathyroidism may contribute to worsening refractory anemia and KDW/inflammation.

K/DOQI gets to the heart of managing dyslipidemias in patients with CKD.

There is a wealth of data in the general population regarding interventions to reduce cardiovascular risk. Unfortunately, most of these studies exclude patients with chronic kidney disease. As a result, the lack of CKD specific data has resulted in a lack of attention and intervention.