How successful dialysis proves to be in treating kidney failure depends on a number of factors including:
Unfortunately, dialysis can only compensate for the loss of kidney function to a certain extent, and having kidneys that do not work properly can place a tremendous strain on the body. In addition, many people who require dialysis are already in a poor state of health.
However, it should be stressed that the survival rates of people who are on dialysis have improved over the past decade and they are expected to continue to improve in the future.
One of the biggest influences on expected survival rates is the age at which a person started the dialysis; the younger the better.
People who begin dialysis when they are in their late twenties have an average life expectancy of 20 years, while older adults who are over 75 years of age have an average life expectancy of four years.
The underlying cause of kidney failure also has an influence on survival rates. People who have kidney failure as a result of polycystic kidney disease and glomerulonephritis tend to have much better long-term survival rates compared with those who have kidney failure as a result of high blood pressure or diabetes.
The one, five and 10 year survival rates (the amount of people you would expect to still be alive one, five and then 10 years after the start of dialysis) for each of the four conditions are as follows:
Though as these survival rates are based on people who started dialysis in the past, they probably do not reflect the current picture today.
