High transporters live just as long on cycler PD

In a study that followed 117 people who started PD in Korea, those who were older, or had diabetes or heart disease had poorer survival. But being a high transporter (wastes move quickly through the peritoneum but water removal is poor) did not reduce survival.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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15+ hours/week of short daily home HD boosts survival

Folks on standard HD have a 50% greater chance of dying on the day after the 2-day no-treatment weekend. Not so with short daily HD! A new study by Kjellstrand et al also finds that just being home boosted survival by 50%, and getting 15+ hours of treatment helped by 16%. Kt/V had no relationship with survival.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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Rapid fluid removal during HD linked with heart damage and death

Short, fast, thrice weekly treatments are hard on the heart. Among 1,846 people on standard HD, those whose fluid removal was the slowest and most gentle were most likely to survive. Rates of fluid removal lower than 10 milliliters per hour per kilo were safest.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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Nocturnal HD? Watch those buttonholes!

Poor buttonhole technique led to a higher rate of hospital stays for sepsis (blood poisoning) among 63 people doing nocturnal in-center HD vs. 172 on standard HD. (Use a sterile tweezers to remove buttonhole scabs to reduce infection.)

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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Survival with diabetes and kidney failure is better

Diabetes plus kidney failure is a tough blow. But, since 1980, survival for people with both health problems has more than doubled. And that was with standard in-center HD. Imagine how much better survival might be with more dialysis!

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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New saliva test measures testosterone levels

Kidney failure and low libido often go hand in hand. Low testosterone levels can be treated--if they are found. A new study finds that a morning saliva test gives results that compare well to blood tests.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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Do surgeons get enough PD catheter training?

A new study suggests that the answer is "no." A survey of surgery programs found that 18% gave no training in PD catheters, though 48% felt it was important. Most put in 2 to 5 catheters. The good news: 62% of programs were willing to give fledgling surgeons more PD training.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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Less depression, short recovery with short daily HD

Depression dropped from 41% to 27% among the 128 dialyzors who took part in the NxStage FREEDOM study. AND, instead of taking nearly 8 hours to feel better after a treatment—it took just 63 minutes.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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Fear of needles, change barriers to nocturnal HD

The Frequent HD Network study compared nocturnal to standard home HD. Schedule control and less commute time were big home HD pluses. Fear of self-cannulation, change from in-center, and lack of motivation were the main reasons some said no.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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Avoid some radiation—go home!

People on standard HD have high rates of cancer vs. the general public. Perhaps this is due to their high number of X-rays and CT scans, suggests a new study. Each one counts—and in-center HD folks have more access procedures, hospital stays, etc.

Read the abstract » | (added 2011-02-24)

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