Non-dialysis care: an important component of care for elderly individuals with advanced stages of chronic kidney disease.

Non-dialysis care (NDC) is the provision of all aspects of renal care except for the dialysis process. While the nomenclature may vary, with terms such as 'conservative care', 'maximal conservative management' or 'non-dialytic treatment' having been associated with NDC, the clinical principle is to provide comprehensive care to patients who opt to forgo dialysis despite increasing uraemic symptoms. NDC therapies focus on pain relief, the use of erythropoietin-stimulating agents, anti-pruritics and anti-nausea therapies, with lower emphasis on strategies used to modulate the rate of renal progression. Patient selection remains the most challenging aspect of developing an NDC program, with selection often being based on physician instinct, family principles and population-based prognostic risk measures. Outcomes are fair with a significant proportion of NDC patients experiencing lower hospitalization days and higher rates of death at home (or in a preferred environment) rather than in acute-care hospitals.