Characteristics of patients with ESRD in the month before death, stratified by presence of surrogate and treatment-limiting directive
| Characteristic | No Surrogate or Treatment-Limiting Directive (n=18,783) | Surrogate Alone (n=2581) | Treatment-Limiting Directive Alone (n=6438) | Surrogate and Treatment-Limiting Directive (n=2914) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, yr | 70±12 | 74±11 | 75±11 | 78±10 |
| Time receiving dialysis, yr | 3 (1, 6) | 3 (1, 5) | 3 (1, 5) | 3 (1, 5) |
| Time from nursing home admission, m | 7 (3, 10) | 8 (4, 11) | 8 (4, 11) | 8 (4, 11) |
| Hemodialysis (versus peritoneal dialysis), % | 98 | 98 | 98 | 97 |
| Women, % | 50 | 51 | 53 | 54 |
| Race, % | ||||
| White | 59 | 76 | 76 | 89 |
| Black | 37 | 21 | 20 | 9 |
| Other | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
| Hospital referral region spending, % | ||||
| Quintile 1 | 6 | 12 | 10 | 17 |
| Quintile 2 | 14 | 17 | 21 | 20 |
| Quintile 3 | 18 | 21 | 19 | 23 |
| Quintile 4 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 19 |
| Quintile 5 | 41 | 30 | 29 | 21 |
| Diabetes, % | 86 | 83 | 82 | 80 |
| Ischemic heart disease, % | 82 | 84 | 83 | 83 |
| Heart failure, % | 90 | 90 | 90 | 91 |
| Stroke, % | 45 | 43 | 45 | 44 |
| Chronic liver disease, % | 27 | 22 | 22 | 19 |
| Chronic lung disease, % | 65 | 66 | 67 | 67 |
| Cancer, % | 26 | 28 | 27 | 28 |
| Depression, % | 45 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| Dementia, % | 32 | 35 | 36 | 39 |
| Impaired decision-making skills, % | 27 | 31 | 36 | 37 |
| Activities of Daily Living scorea | 16±10 | 17±7 | 17±7 | 17±7 |
| Days hospitalized in prior year | 43 (23, 74) | 37 (21, 65) | 34 (18, 58) | 29 (15, 50) |
Continuous variables are presented as mean±SD, or median (interquartile range), as appropriate.
↵a The Activities of Daily Living score ranges from 0 to 28; higher scores indicate more functional limitations.