Individualized bicarbonate concentrations in the peritoneal dialysis fluid to optimize acid-base status in CAPD patients.

BACKGROUND: A large percentage of peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients being treated with standard lactate-containing solutions tend to have serum bicarbonate concentrations below or above the normal range. The inter-patient variability of serum bicarbonate is a result of many influences and it may be appropriate to adjust the bicarbonate concentration in the peritoneal dialysis fluid (PDF) to the current serum bicarbonate in the individual patient.

METHODS: Two concentrations of bicarbonate in PDF were compared in this study (34 and 39 mmol/l). Eligible patients underwent a pre-study phase of 12 weeks to determine serum bicarbonate every six weeks. Sixty-one patients entered the stratification phase. Acidotic patients (serum venous bicarbonate <25.3 mmol/l) were allocated to the high bicarbonate solution, patients in the normal serum bicarbonate range or alkalotic patients (serum venous bicarbonate >25.3 mmol/l) to the low bicarbonate solution. Patients were followed up for 24 weeks, in which study visits were performed every 6 weeks to assess acid-base status, peritoneal and renal function, and to calculate protein nitrogen appearance rate (PNA).

RESULTS: Patients with acidosis at baseline had higher body weight, body surface area, blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine and PNA than patients with bicarbonate within the normal range or with alkalosis. They significantly improved their serum bicarbonate (23.45 +/- 2.5 vs 25.7 +/- 2.8 mmol/l, baseline vs week 24; P < 0.01), whereas patients treated with the low bicarbonate PDF maintained their serum venous bicarbonate over the 24 week study period (27.77 +/- 2.9 vs 27.06 +/- 2.1 mmol/l, baseline vs week 24; P = NS). Analysing both study groups together, at baseline, 66% of the patients presented with mild to moderate acidosis, this figure at the end of the study was 23.4%. PNA did not change in the two groups; however, in the subgroup of patients (N = 23) in whom the 39 mmol/l PDF was effective in correcting metabolic acidosis, a decrease in PNA was observed.

CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrated that the individualized application of low and high bicarbonate PD PDFs allows one to achieve normal acid-base status in a large percentage of CAPD patients with potential benefits to nutritional status.