RESUMEN
Latin America, a region composed of a series of neighboring countries that share their history, Latin ancestry and language (Spanish or Portuguese), includes Mexico, Central America, the Spanish Caribbean islands, and South America. The Latin-American Dialysis and Kidney Transplantation Registry, which has been operative since 1991, collects data from 20 countries (Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Uruguay), where 97% of Latin Americans live. The prevalence of renal replacement therapy (RRT) has increased from 119 patients per million (pmp) in 1991 to 478.2 in 2005 (147,158 patients [57%] on chronic hemodialysis, 58,251 [23%] on peritoneal dialysis and 52,565 [20%] living with a functioning kidney graft). The incidence rate also increased from 27.8 pmp in 1992 to 167 in 2005. The increment in prevalence and incidence occurred in all Latin- American countries. The transplantation rate increased from 3,7 pmp in 1987 to 15 pmp in 2005 (7,968 kidney transplants performed this year, the cumulative number being 98,415). Access to RRT was available for every patient diagnosed with end-stage renal disease only in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and Uruguay. In Latin America, the incidence and prevalence of RRT increased year by year. Only in some countries is access to RRT available to 100% of diagnosed patients. Detection and prevention programs for chronic kidney disease are needed in the region. Meanwhile, access to RRT has to be improved for everybody who needs it.