Choice of dialysis modality.

Few medical decisions have as profound an impact on every aspect of a patient's life as the selection of dialysis modality by a patient with end-stage renal disease. It remains uncertain whether the outcome differences seen between hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis patients, if any, in observational studies are attributable to the dialysis modality. Such studies, thus, are insufficient to deny patients a choice in selecting their dialysis modality.