Age and Sex Disparities in Discussions About Kidney Transplantation in Adults Undergoing Dialysis

Objectives To explore whether disparities in age and sex in access to kidney transplantation (KT) originate at the time of prereferral discussions about KT. Design Cross‐sectional survey. Setting Outpatient dialysis centers in Maryland (n = 26). Participants Individuals who had recently initiated hemodialysis treatment (N = 416). Measurements Participants reported whether medical professionals (nephrologist, primary medical doctor, dialysis staff) and social group members (significant other, family member, friend) discussed KT with them and, when applicable, rated the tone of discussions. Relative risks were estimated using modified Poisson regression. Results Participants aged 65 and older were much less likely than those who were younger to have had discussions with medical professionals (44.5% vs 74.8%, P