A promising pediatric peritoneal dialysis experience in a resource-limited setting with the support of saving young lives program

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), acute kidney injury (AKI) contributes to the high rate of child mortality owing to the conjunction of poverty, deficiency of qualified health-care providers in pediatric nephrology, and the lack of pediatric dialysis programs. We aimed to describe the recent experience of the first pediatric acute peritoneal dialysis (PD) program in DRC. This is a retrospective cohort study on epidemiology, clinical features and outcomes of children admitted from January 2018 to January 2019 at the University Hospital of Kinshasa for AKI and treated with PD. This pediatric PD program started by a team of one physician and one nurse who were trained in the local production of PD fluids and bedside catheter insertion technique in Benin Republic. The training was jointly supported by the Flemish Inter-University Council (VLIR) TEAM project and Saving Young Lives (SYL) program of ISN, ISPD, EuroPD, and IPNA. From January 2018 to January 2019, 49 children (aged 4 months-15 years) were admitted for AKI mainly due to severe malaria and sepsis. Dialysis was indicated in 35 of 49 (71.4%), 32 of 35 (91.4%) were treated with PD, two with hemodialysis (HD) in adult ward and one died at admission. Data of the two patients transferred for HD were not available for follow-up. The main indications were uremia and prolonged anuria. Of 32 dialyzed patients, 24 (75%) recovered normal renal function 3 months after discharge. Peritonitis was observed in 2 of 32 (6.2%) patients and the mortality was 18.7%. This promising experience proves that with simple means including use of locally produced dialysis fluids and low peritonitis rates, we can effectively save lives of children suffering from AKI.