Obesity drives secondary procedures to achieve access maturation in end-stage renal disease.

Background: Establishing long-term arteriovenous access is an important component in the long-term care of a patient with end-stage renal disease. The increasing frequency of obesity is reported to impact the access management of end-stage renal disease patients. This study aims to evaluate the outcomes of arteriovenous fistulae (AVF) in obese and nonobese patients.

Methods: A retrospective review of all patients over ten years with primary autogenous AVF (radiocephalic, brachiocephalic, and brachial-basilic) was undertaken at a single center. Patients were subcategorized by body mass index into nonobese, class I, II, and III obesity. Outcomes of maturation (successful progression to hemodialysis), reintervention, functional dialysis (continuous hemodialysis for 3 consecutive months), and patency were examined.

Results: From January 1999 to December 2019, 2311 patients (67% female; mean age, 61 ± 15 years) underwent primary AVF placement (12% radiocephalic, 53% brachiocephalic, and 35% brachial basilic). Forty-one percent were nonobese, 29% had class I obesity, 19% had class II obesity, and 11% had class III obesity. The majority of patients were diabetic and Hispanic. The 30-day major adverse cardiovascular event rate was elevated in class II (0.20%) and class III (0.50%) obesity compared with class I obesity (0.15%) and nonobese (0.05%). The 30-day morbidity rate was higher in all classes of obesity (0.5% vs0.3% vs 0.2% vs 0.05% for class III vs class II vs class I obesity and nonobese, respectively). Early thrombosis was significantly increased in class II (9%) and class III obesity (12%) compared with class I obesity (5%) and nonobese (3%). There was a two-fold increase in procedures to effect maturation in class II (51%) and class III (74%) obesity compared with class I obesity (22%) and nonobese (34%). Secondary patency at 3 years was significantly lower in class III (62 ± 4%) and class II (79 ± 3%) compared with class I obesity (87 ± 2%) and nonobese (93 ± 4%). All classes of obesity required significantly more secondary Interventions per year compared with nonobese (3.9 vs 3.1 vs 2.5 vs 1.4 secondary interventions per year for class III vs class II vs class I obesity and nonobese, respectively).

Conclusions: Advancing obesity class is associated with an increased number of procedures to achieve AVF maturation and is associated with poorer patency and functionality as the category of obesity advances.