Original Article Effectiveness of multidisciplinary care for chronic kidney disease in Taiwan: a 3-year prospective cohort study

Background. Previous studies have demonstrated that multidisciplinary pre-dialysis education and team care may slow the decline in renal function for chronic kidney disease (CKD). Our study compared clinical outcomes of CKD patients between multidisciplinary care (MDC) and usual care in Taiwan. Methods. In this 3-year prospective cohort study from 2008 to 2010, we recruited 1056 CKD subjects, aged 20– 80 years, from five hospitals, who received either MDC or usual care, had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) <60 mL/min, were matched one to one with the propensity score including gender, age, eGFR and co-morbidity diseases. The MDC team was under-cared based on NKF K/DOQI clinical practice guidelines an