title: Study of the incidence of dialysis in São Paulo, the largest Brazilian city.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Chronic kidney disease is a major public health problem worldwide. In Brazil, approximately 100,000 patients (January 2012) receive renal replacement therapy. Nevertheless, data on dialysis incidence in the Brazilian population are scarce. This study aims to analyze the incidence of patients starting dialysis therapy in São Paulo City, the largest Brazilian metropolis.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cohort study analyzed data from 9,994 patients starting hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis funded by the Brazilian Public Health System during a 5-year period (2007-2011). Patient data for this study (recorded as electronic files) were obtained from the São Paulo City's Dialysis Regulatory Bureau, which regulates the allocation of patients requiring dialytic therapy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The dialysis incidence rates were 178, 174, 170, 185 and 188 per million population for the years 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively. The incidence rates increased with age. Hypertension and diabetes were the main etiologies diagnosed. Hemodialysis was the chosen dialysis modality in the majority of patients (92.6%), whereas the percentage of patients referred for peritoneal dialysis decreased from 10.1% to 5.5%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The incidence of patients starting renal replacement therapy from 2007-2011 in São Paulo was stable but higher than the projected incidence for the entire country. The authors emphasize the need for further studies of the incidence of dialysis in the Brazilian population and for the creation of a Brazilian registry of dialysis patients, which would be a valuable tool for developing healthcare policies and renal replacement therapy strategies.
authors.affiliation: Dante Pazzanese Institute of Cardiology, Department of Hypertension and Nephrology, São Paulo/SP, Brazil. accordeirojr@uol.com.br
authors.forename: Antonio Carlos
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Cordeiro
authors.forename: Juan Jesús
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Carrero
authors.forename: Abdul Rashid
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Qureshi
authors.forename: Ricardo Ferreira da
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Cunha
authors.forename: Bengt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lindholm
authors.forename: Isac de
authors.initials: Id
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.forename: Irene Lourdes
authors.initials: IL
authors.lastname: Noronha
mesh_terms: D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002947:Cities / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D006435:Renal Dialysis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D051436:Renal Insufficiency, Chronic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013997:Time Factors