[Experience with continuous arteriovenous hemodiafiltration for acute kidney insufficiency in intensive care patients]

Acute renal failure is a frequent complication at the Intensive Care Department. For this complication dialysis is often necessary. In our Intensive Care Department we have opted for continuous arteriovenous hemodiafiltration (CAVHD) as the treatment of first choice for patients with acute renal failure. We describe the results in 18 patients treated with CAVHD. In all patients an arterious and a venous catheter were placed, in most cases in the femoral artery and vein. A capillary hemofilter was placed between the catheters. In the filter a counterflow mechanism took place. All patients were successfully treated with CAVHD. Haemodynamic instability as an effect of the treatment did not appear. The fluid and electrolyte balance was perfectly under control. Renal function was recovered in 7 patients. Twelve patients died. The cause of death was never associated with the renal failure or with the CAVHD treatment.

Characteristics of red blood cell populations fractionated with a combination of counterflow centrifugation and Percoll separation

Red blood cell (RBC) fractions were studied after separation of whole blood by means of counterflow centrifugation, Percoll column (Pharmacia, Uppsala, Sweden), and a combination of both separation techniques. Mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) were measured in each fraction. From the results it was obvious that the combination of both techniques was the best separation technique of these three. MCV had a good correlation with cell age as measured with HbA1c concentration gradient; MCH and MCHC less so. MCV and MCH decreased in parallel to an increase in HbA1c. MCHC increased with increasing HbA1c. From these data it is concluded that there is a steadily ongoing loss of cellular hemoglobin and proportionally more cellular water during the life of the RBC.

Urine cytology as a screening method for transitional-cell carcinoma in dialysis patients with analgesic nephropathy

The abuse of analgesic-containing drugs leads to chronic nephropathy with an increased risk of developing a transitional-cell carcinoma of the urinary tract. In our experience follow-up is often stopped or has never been started when patients present for dialysis. We use urine cytology as the screening method. Nine of the 138 patients entering dialysis between 1980 and 1990 had analgesic nephropathy. In three patients urine cytology led to a suspicion of malignancy. Cystoscopy and/or retrograde pyelography showed a carcinoma of the renal pelvis in two patients and a carcinoma of the bladder in one patient. The patients with carcinoma of the renal pelvis died of cardiovascular complications within 2 years of nephroureterectomy. An autopsy was performed in one of these patients and there were no residual tumours or metastases. In the other patient autopsy was not performed, but urine cytology again suggested malignancy. The patient with a carcinoma of the bladder is still alive. She was treated with transurethral resection of the tumour and etoglucide instillations. We conclude that urine cytology is a good screening method for the early detection of transitional-cell carcinomas in dialysis patients with analgesic nephropathy.

Cytomegalovirus infection and disease in renal transplant patients treated with cyclosporin. A prospective study

In this prospective study, the incidence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and CMV disease was determined in 175 renal transplant recipients on cyclosporin and low-dose prednisone. CMV infection occurred in 51.4% of the patients, CMV disease in 13.7%. The major manifestations of CMV disease were fever of unknown origin and leukopenia. In the group with CMV infection, there was an increased occurrence of rejection (60% in infected vs 27% in noninfected patients). In most patients (41/54), the rejection preceded the CMV infection. CMV infection did not lead to a decreased graft survival. There was no close time relationship between the onset of clinical symptoms of CMV disease and the laboratory confirmation of CMV infection. A subgroup of patients at risk for the development of severe CMV disease could not be identified.