Nephrology, dialysis, transplantation : official publication of the European Dialysis and Transplant Association - European Renal Association
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Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. · Oct 2006
Multicenter StudyWeekly low-dose treatment with intravenous iron sucrose maintains iron status and decreases epoetin requirement in iron-replete haemodialysis patients.
Haemodialysis patients need sustained treatment with intravenous iron because iron deficiency limits the efficacy of recombinant human epoetin therapy in these patients. However, the optimal intravenous iron maintenance dose has not been established yet. ⋯ A regular 50 mg weekly dosing schedule of iron sucrose maintains stable iron stores and haemoglobin levels in haemodialysed patients and allows considerable dose reductions for epoetins. Low-dose intravenous iron therapy may represent an optimal approach to treat the continuous loss of iron in dialysis patients.
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Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. · Oct 2006
Multicenter StudyStarting and withdrawing haemodialysis--associations between nephrologists' opinions, patient characteristics and practice patterns (data from the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study).
The incidence and prevalence of haemodialysis vary widely across countries. The variation may be attributable to differences in the incidence of end-stage renal disease and/or in the availability of haemodialysis. Previous studies have identified differences in nephrologists' opinions about the availability of haemodialysis and its appropriateness for patients with comorbidities. We studied the associations between nephrologists' opinions, availability of haemodialysis, patient characteristics and comorbidities, and facilities' withdrawal rates. ⋯ Differences within and across countries in nephrologists' opinions regarding starting and withdrawing haemodialysis reflect differences in access to haemodialysis and the practice of withdrawal of haemodialysis in their facilities.
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Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. · Oct 2006
RIFLE classification is predictive of short-term prognosis in critically ill patients with acute renal failure supported by extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been utilized for critically ill patients, such as those with post-cardiotomy cardiogenic shock or life-threatening respiratory failure. Acute renal failure following ECMO support has an extremely elevated mortality rate. This study examined the outcomes of patients treated with ECMO and characterized the association between mortality and RIFLE (risk of renal failure, injury to the kidney, failure of kidney function, loss of kidney function and end-stage renal failure) classification. ⋯ This investigation confirms that the prognosis for critically ill patients supported by ECMO is grave. The RIFLE category is a simple, reproducible and easily applied evaluation tool with good prognostic capability that might generate objective information for patient families and physicians and supplements the clinical judgment of prognosis.
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Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. · Oct 2006
Effects of anaesthesia on fluid and solute transport in a C57BL6 mouse model of peritoneal dialysis.
Genetically modified mice show promise as animal models for studying the physiology and pathophysiology of the peritoneum during peritoneal dialysis (PD). Methods for evaluation of the functional characteristics of the mouse peritoneum have not been studied extensively, and the effects of anaesthesia on fluid and solute transport in mouse models of PD are unknown. ⋯ Ketamine anaesthesia in the mouse decreases PA values for glucose and mannitol when used as osmotic agents in PD solutions. The decrease in transperitoneal transport for these osmotic agents increases the final volume of fluid which can be obtained from the peritoneal cavity.