Peritoneal Equilibration Test Reference Values Using A 3.86% Glucose Solution during the First Year of Peritoneal Dialysis: Results of a Multicenter Study of a Large Patient Population

Background The original peritoneal equilibration test (PET) was used to classify peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients using a 2.27% glucose solution. It has since been suggested that a 3.86% glucose solution be used because this provides better information about ultrafiltration (UF) capacity and the sodium (Na) sieving of the peritoneal membrane. Objective The aim of this study was to determine reference values for a PET using a 3.86% glucose solution (PET-3.86%). Methods We evaluated the PET-3.86% in a large population of incident PD patients attending 27 Italian dialysis centers. Results We evaluated the results of 758 PET-3.86% in 758 incident PD patients (1 test per patient). The mean duration of PD was 5 ± 3 months. The ratio of the concentrations of creatinine in dialysate/plasma (D/P Creat ) was 0.73 ± 0.1 (median 0.74). The ratio between the concentrations of glucose at the end/beginning of the test (D/D 0 ) was 0.25 ± 0.08 (median 0.24). Ultrafiltration uncorrected and corrected for bag overfill was respectively 776 ± 295 mL (median 781 mL) and 675 ± 308 mL (median 689 mL). Sodium sieving was 8.4 ± 3.8 mmol/L (median 8.0 mmol/L). Conclusion The results of the study provide PET-3.86% reference values for the beginning of PD that can be used to classify PD patients into transport classes and monitor them over time.