Relationship between hemodialysis patients' educational level and arteriovenous fistula patency

Objectives Vascular access is a lifeline for the patients who are in need of long-term hemodialysis. Native arteriovenous fistula is the most intensively preferred vascular access method owing to its longevity and convenience of use. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to determine whether there might be a relationship between hemodialysis patients' educational levels and arteriovenous fistula patency. Methods A total of 349 patients who were attending in a chronic hemodialysis program between June 2018 and September 2018 at Bursa Uludag University, Faculty of Medicine Dialysis Unit and in a private dialysis center in Istanbul were included in this study. The patients were grouped into two: those who have had arteriovenous fistula primary failure at least once and those who have never had arteriovenous fistula primary failure. Educational levels of the patients were classified according to Turkish National Education system (illiterate, primary school graduate, secondary school graduate, high school graduate, and university graduate). Mann-Whitney U and Chi-square tests were performed for statistical analyses. Risk factors were determined by applying backward binary logistic regression analysis. Results A total of 349 patients, 161 (46.1%) females and 188 (53.9%) males, were examined retrospectively. The median age of the patients was 64 years (range: 18-90 years). Educational level comparison revealed statistically significant difference in terms of fistula patency (p = 0.016). In particular, fistula patency was significantly lower in illiterate, primary, secondary, and high school graduates in comparison with university graduates (p = 0.001, p = 0.015, p = 0.003, and p = 0.018, respectively). When each group of educational level was analyzed separately in terms of fistula patency, it was observed that the higher the educational level was, the lower arteriovenous fistula primary failure rates were. Conclusions In this study, we observed a lower rate of fistula patency in patients with a low level of education. Hence, we are of the opinion that the trainings delivered on arteriovenous fistula care in dialysis centers are required to be shaped in accordance with educational levels of patients.