Current incidence, treatment patterns and outcome of end-stage renal disease among indigenous groups in Australia and New Zealand

The changes in rates of treated end‐stage renal disease (ESRD) among indigenous populations have profound consequences for those individuals affected and for health‐care providers. By using data from the Australia and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant (ANZDATA) Registry, we examined the current incidence, treatment and outcomes of ESRD among indigenous groups in Australia and New Zealand. All patients who began renal replacement therapy (RRT) in Australia or New Zealand between October 1991 and September 2000 were included. Rates of ESRD, RRT modalities, renal transplantation and mortality were the outcomes examined. End‐stage renal disease rates among indigenous groups in Australia and New Zealand exceeded non‐indigenous rates up to eightfold. The median age of indigenous ESRD patients was younger (51 vs 60 years, P