Blood Purification

In October 2023 a letter appeared in The Lancet summarizing the view, of more than 200 physicians from 25 countries, that attempts to censor physician communication by forbidding the word Renal are both misguided and harmful [1]. Since letters are necessarily constrained by length, we now present a more comprehensive report on this issue.

INTRODUCTION: Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) and Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy (CRRT) are critical areas in nephrology. The effectiveness of ChatGPT in simpler, patient education-oriented questions has not been thoroughly assessed. This study evaluates the proficiency of ChatGPT 4.0 in responding to such questions, subjected to various linguistic alterations. METHODS: Eighty-nine questions were sourced from the Mayo Clinic Handbook for educating patients on AKI and CRRT...

Introduction Comparison of the marker kinetics procalcitonin, presepsin and endotoxin during extracorporeal hemoperfusion with polymyxin B adsorbing cartridge (PMX-HA) have never been described in abdominal sepsis. We aim to compare the trend of three biomarkers in septic post-surgical abdominal patients in Intensive care Unit (ICU) treated with PMX-HA and their prognostic value. Methods Ninety abdominal postsurgical patients were enrolled into different groups according to the evidence of postoperative sepsis or not...

INTRUDUCTION: AKI is a frequent complication in critical illness and portends poor outcome. CCL14 has been validated to predict persistent severe AKI in critically ill patients. We examined the association of CCL14 with urine output within 48 hours. METHODS: In pooled data from 2 studies of critically ill patients with KDIGO stage 2-3 AKI, CCL14 was measured by NEPHROCLEAR™CCL14 Test on the Astute 140® Meter, and divided to low, intermediate and high categories (1...

Introduction In critically ill patients undergoing continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT), a positive fluid balance (FB) is associated with adverse outcomes. However, current FB management practices in CRRT patients are poorly understood. We aimed to study FB and its components in British and Australian CRRT patients to inform future trials. Methods We obtained detailed electronic health record data on all fluid-related variables during CRRT and hourly FB for the first seven days of treatment. Results We studied 1,616 patients from three tertiary ICUs in two countries...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

INTRODUCTION: The manual single lumen alternating micro-batch hemodiafiltration (mSLAMB) system is a closed-loop dialysis system designed to provide kidney support in emergency situations (e.g., fluid overload, hyperkalemia, acidemia). If done repeatedly in small batches and at high flow rates, this system was found to achieve clearance levels comparable to traditional renal replacement therapy (RRT). METHODS: Using a porcine model, uremic toxins and exogenous fluorescent tracer concentrations were successfully lowered within just 1 hour of treatment...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

INTRODUCTION: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are known water pollutants leading to potential public health consequences. High blood levels of PFAS have been associated with several pathological conditions including testicular and kidney cancer. Classic extracorporeal therapies have demonstrated limited efficiency and new approaches should be explored. In this study we studied the possible role of hemoadsorption to achieve a fast, safe and effective removal of PFAS from blood in patients with high blood levels...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

INTRODUCTION: The incidence of thrombocytopenia in neonates receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) with and without concurrent continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) and associated complications have not been well described. The primary aims of the current study were to (1) characterize thrombocytopenia in neonates receiving ECMO (including treated concurrently with CRRT) and (2) evaluate risk factors (including CRRT utilization) associated with severe thrombocytopenia...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

INTRODUCTION: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is frequent in critically ill COVID-19 patients and is associated with a higher mortality risk. By increasing intrathoracic pressure, positive pressure ventilation (PPV) may reduce renal perfusion pressure by reducing venous return to the heart or by increasing renal venous congestion. This study's aim was to evaluate the association between AKI and hemodynamic and ventilatory parameters in COVID-19 patients with ARDS. METHODS: this is a single-centre retrospective observational study...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Historically IV and enteral fluids given during acute kidney injury (AKI) were restricted before the introduction of continuous renal replacement therapies (CRRT) when more liberal fluids improved nutrition for the critically ill. However fluid accumulation can occur when higher volumes each day are not considered in the fluid balance prescribing and daily review for the NET ultrafiltration (NUF) volume target. KEY MESSAGES: The delivered hours of CRRT each day are vital for achievement of fluid balance and time off therapy makes the task more challenging...

BACKGROUND: The evaluation and management of fluid balance are key challenges in critical care patients who require renal replacement therapies because cumulative fluid balance is an independent factor that increases morbidity and mortality in different clinical scenarios. SUMMARY: One of the strategies when fluid overload is refractory to diuretics, is extracorporeal fluid removal (i.e., net ultrafiltration [UFNET] during kidney replacement therapy). However, problems with UFNET without individualized assessment are cardiovascular events and intradialytic hypotension, events that contribute to decreasing organ perfusion and sympathetic stress...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Endothelial dysfunction (ED) is considered a marker of vascular complications, especially in patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). Inflammation and the uremic state contribute to ED in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD). Recently, the medium cut-off (MCO) dialysis membrane has been proposed to efficiently remove inflammatory cytokines and large middle-sized uremic toxins, with the potential effect to improve endothelial function. This study aims to compare the effect of dialysis with MCO or high-flux membranes on the endothelial function of patients on chronic HD...

INTRODUCTION: This study aims to evaluate the predictive value of the low frequency/high frequency (LF/HF) ratio in all causes of death and hospitalizations in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients. METHODS: This is a single-center prospective study with a 48-h electrocardiograph (ECG) recording. A total of 110 patients were enrolled in the study from October 1, 2021, to September 30, 2022. ECG recordings started before initiation of the hemodialysis (HD) session and lasted for 48 h, covering the intra- as well as inter- HD period...