Abstract: Objective  The aim of this study was to investigate the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in hemodialysis (HD) patients in China, so as to provide evidences for conducting a multicenter study on CVD in the future.  Methods  The HD Working Group of the HD Branch of the Chinese Hospital Association developed a questionnaire, and pushed the questionnaire through Questionnaire Star to the medical staff of HD centers in China from 2024.1.11-2024.1.18 to investigate the prevalence of CVDs and the screening status. Results A total of 186 valid questionnaires were collected, covering 19 provinces, 4 autonomous regions and 4 municipalities. Coronary artery disease and vascular calcification were the most common types of CVD in HD patients, with the proportion of prevalence exceeding 40% in 55.9% and 62.4% of HD centers, respectively; followed by ischemic stroke, with relatively low proportions of atrial fibrillation and cerebral hemorrhage. In 68.6% of HD centers, the annual mortality rate of patients was less than 10%. In terms of CVD screening, 58.6% of HD centers performed echocardiography for patients once a year, but only 25 (13.4%) arranged for lateral abdominal plain films for patients once a year, and only 15 (8.1%) HD centers performed pulse wave velocity for patients once a year. What’s more, 39.8% of HD centers considered patient compliance to be poor, and 83.3% of medical staff were willing to participate in studies related to the burden of CVD in HD patients.  Conclusion  The proportion of HD patients with CVD is high in China, especially coronary artery disease and vascular calcification, but numerous HD centers failed to conduct regular CVD screening, and patient compliance was poor. CVD screening and management should be strengthened in the future to reduce the burden of CVD disease in HD patients.

Key words: Hemodialysis, Cardiovascular disease, Disease burden