Multiple single cannulation technique of arteriovenous fistula: A randomized controlled trial

Introduction

Despite the impact needling has had on vascular access survival and patient outcome, there is no universal or standardized method proposed for proper cannulation. Rigorous studies are needed, examining cannulation practices, and challenges to achieving complication‐free cannulation.

Methods

This randomized, open‐label trial was conducted at 18 dialysis units owned by a large private dialysis provider operating in Portugal. Eligible patients were adults on chronic hemodialysis, with a new arteriovenous fistula (AVF); cannulated for at least 4 weeks complication‐free. Patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to one of three cannulation techniques (CT): Multiple Single cannulation Technique (MuST), rope‐ladder (RLC), and buttonhole (BHC). The primary endpoint was AVF primary patency at 1 year.

Findings

One hundred seventy‐two patients were enrolled between March 2014 and March 2017. Fifty‐nine patients were allocated to MuST, 56 to RLC, and 57 to BHC.

MuST and RLC were associated with a better AVF primary patency than BHC. Primary patency at 12 months was 76.3% in MuST, 59.6% in BHC, and 76.8% in RLC group. Mean AVF survival times were 10.5 months (95% CI = 9.6, 11.3) in the MuST group, 10.4 months (95% CI = 9.5, 11.2) in RLC, and 9.5 months (95% CI = 8.6, 10.4) in BHC. BHC was a significant risk predictor for AVF survival with 2.13 times more events than the other two CT (HR 2.13; 95% CI = 1.07, 4.21; p = 0.03).

Discussion

MuST was easy to implement without a diagram and there is no need to use blunt needles. This study showed MuST was efficacious and safe in maintaining the longevity of AVF in dialysis patients.

RENA Study: Cross-Sectional Study to Evaluate CKD Prevalence in Portugal

INTRODUCTION

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major global public health problem associated with increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity, premature mortality, and decreased quality of life. In Portugal, the PREVADIAB study showed a prevalence of CKD stages 3-5 of 6.1%. To overcome the limitations of the PREVADIAB study, the RENA study aimed to provide an estimate of the prevalence of CKD at a national level and to characterize CKD patients.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study including users of Primary Health Care Units aged 18 or more. After obtaining written informed consent, sociodemographic and clinical data were recorded through a structured questionnaire, anthropometric measurements were taken, and blood and urine samples were collected. All participants initially meeting the criteria for CKD were contacted at least 3 months after the initial assessment for confirmation of the analytical results.

RESULTS

A total of 3,135 individuals were included, 65.4% were female, and the mean age was 56.7 ± 15.9 years. The prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes was 38, 32, and 16%, respectively, and 31% were obese. After data adjustment by gender, age group, and geographical region, the global prevalence of CKD was 20.9% (95% CI: 6.5-35.3%), with no differences between genders and a significant increase with the advance of the age groups.

CONCLUSION

Our study showed a CKD prevalence above the worldwide and Europe average. Despite the study limitations, it has become clear that it is urgent to identify CKD patients earlier and to develop awareness and educational programs to prevent CKD and its associated diseases.

CKD Prevalence Varies across the European General Population

CKD prevalence estimation is central to CKD management and prevention planning at the population level. This study estimated CKD prevalence in the European adult general population and investigated international variation in CKD prevalence by age, sex, and presence of diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. We collected data from 19 general-population studies from 13 European countries. CKD stages 1-5 was defined as eGFR<60 ml/min per 1.73 m(2), as calculated by the CKD-Epidemiology Collaboration equation, or albuminuria >30 mg/g, and CKD stages 3-5 was defined as eGFR<60 ml/min per 1.73 m(2) CKD prevalence was age- and sex-standardized to the population of the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU27). We found considerable differences in both CKD stages 1-5 and CKD stages 3-5 prevalence across European study populations. The adjusted CKD stages 1-5 prevalence varied between 3.31% (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 3.30% to 3.33%) in Norway and 17.3% (95% CI, 16.5% to 18.1%) in northeast Germany. The adjusted CKD stages 3-5 prevalence varied between 1.0% (95% CI, 0.7% to 1.3%) in central Italy and 5.9% (95% CI, 5.2% to 6.6%) in northeast Germany. The variation in CKD prevalence stratified by diabetes, hypertension, and obesity status followed the same pattern as the overall prevalence. In conclusion, this large-scale attempt to carefully characterize CKD prevalence in Europe identified substantial variation in CKD prevalence that appears to be due to factors other than the prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, and obesity.

Amanita poisonings resulting in acute, reversible renal failure: new cases, new toxic Amanita mushrooms

BACKGROUND

Renal failure as a consequence of eating mushrooms has been reported repeatedly after ingestion of webcaps of the Cortinarius orellanus group. But mushrooms of the genus Amanita can also cause renal failure: Amanita smithiana (North America) and Amanita proxima (Mediterranean area). Here, we discuss poisonings caused by other white amanitas. A German and--independently--two Portuguese patients reported the ingestion of completely white mushrooms with ring. Similar to intoxications with A. smithiana or A. proxima, the clinical picture was characterized by nausea and vomiting 10-12 h after ingestion, severe acute renal failure and mild hepatitis. Renal biopsy showed acute interstitial nephritis and tubular necrosis. Two patients were given temporary haemodialysis. All have fully recovered their renal function. Poisonings caused by mushrooms containing the toxin of A. smithiana were suspected. We tested 20 Amanita species for the presence of this toxin.

METHODS

Thin layer chromatography was applied to detect A. smithiana nephrotoxin in herbarium specimens using authentic material of A. smithiana as reference.

RESULTS

A. smithiana toxin could be detected in Amanita boudieri, Amanita gracilior and in Amanita echinocephala. A. boudieri was collected by the Portuguese patients. A. echinocephala is the only nephrotoxic Amanita growing North of the Alps and is suspected to be the cause of renal failure in the German patient. No A. smithiana toxin was detectable in the nephrotoxic A. proxima.

CONCLUSIONS

A. boudieri, A. gracilior and A. echinocephala are nephrotoxic. These intoxications are clinically similar to that of A. smithiana, with acute reversible renal failure and mild hepatitis but are different in their clinical picture from Orellanus syndrome characterized by a delayed onset of severe and often irreversible renal failure.

Prevalence of chronic kidney disease and associated risk factors, and risk of end-stage renal disease: data from the PREVADIAB study

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a growing public health problem. However, data on risk factors and prevalence of CKD exist only in a small number of countries. Portugal has the highest incidence of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) among European countries, but there are huge disparities among countries. Whether these disparities reflect differences in risk factors, prevalence of CKD or other factors is currently unknown.

METHODS

We analyzed data from a nationally representative sample of 5,167 subjects, and estimated the prevalence of CKD and associated risk factors, and combined these prevalence estimates with available data on ESRD.

RESULTS

The prevalence of risk factors such as diabetes (11.7%), obesity (33.7%), and metabolic syndrome (41.5%) was similar to that in the US, but greater than in most European countries. The prevalence of CKD stages 3-5 was 6.1%, which is similar to that in other Western countries. The risk of ESRD was greater than in other European countries, but lower than in the US.

CONCLUSION

The high incidence of ESRD among the Portuguese population is not due to a greater prevalence of CKD. A higher rate of progression associated with the high prevalence of risk factors may account for the high incidence of ESRD. The role of unmeasured factors needs to be evaluated in further studies.

Haemolytic uraemic syndrome associated with H1N1 influenza

Haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS) is one of the two forms of thrombotic microangiopathies and is characterized by the triad of microangiopathic haemolytic anaemia, thrombocytopaenia, and acute renal failure. It has been associated with bacterial and viral infections as well as non-infective causes. We report a subject who presented with HUS associated with an influenza-like syndrome which was confirmed as an influenza A (H1N1) infection. There are reports of HUS associated with seasonal influenza, but there have been no reported cases of HUS after novel influenza A (H1N1) in the literature so far.

Antibody-mediated pure red cell aplasia (PRCA) on switching from darbepoetin alfa to epoetin beta: what are the implications?

We report the development of antibody-mediated pure red cell aplasia (PRCA) in a 63-year-old man with end-stage renal disease following a switch from darbepoetin alfa to epoetin beta. Haemoglobin levels began to decrease 6 months after the switch. Increasing the epoetin beta dose produced no response and regular blood transfusions were required; PRCA was confirmed and epoetin beta was discontinued. The patient responded positively to immunosuppression; after 2 months on prednisone and cyclophosphamide, haemoglobin levels stabilized and no further transfusions were required. This case highlights the difficulty in establishing a cause-effect relationship where more than one erythropoiesis-stimulating agent is involved.

A prospective study on incidence of bacterial infections in portuguese dialysis units

BACKGROUND

Viral infection has been the main epidemiologic concern in the hemodialysis unit; however, bacterial infection is responsible for more than 30% of all causes of morbidity and mortality in our patients, vascular access infection being the culprit in 73% of all bacteremias.

METHODS

A prospective multicenter cohort study of bacterial infections incidence, conducted from January to July 2004 in five hemodialysis units, to record and track bacterial infections, using a validated database from CDC's Dialysis Surveillance Network Program.

RESULTS

4,501 patient-months (P-M) were surveilled, being dialyzed through a native fistula (AVF) in 60.6%, a graft (PTFE) in 31.3%, a tunneled catheter (TC) in 7.6%, and a transient catheter (C) in 0.5%. As target events, we registered 166 hospitalizations - 3.7/100 P-M (2.2/100 P-M in patients with AVF, 4 in PTFE, 9.9 in TC, and 19 in C), and 182 intravenous antibiotic courses. Of these 182 antibiotic treatments, 47.8% included vancomycin, only 30% had blood cultures drawn pretreatment, and only 36% were positive. We recorded 98 infections at the vascular access site 2.18/100 P-M (0.95 in AVF, 1.6 in PTFE, 12.6 in TC, and 42.85 in C) and 2.13 infections/100 P-M at other sites. The isolated microorganisms were Staphylococcus epidermidis in 40.1%, Staphylococcus aureus in 30.1%, Pseudomonas in 13.3%, and Escherichia coli in 3.3%. Although we found a diversity of practice patterns, the number of target events (8.4/100 P-M) and the bacterial infections incidence (4.31/100 P-M) were remarkably homogeneous in the five centers.

CONCLUSION

(1) High incidence of bacterial infections, causing major morbidity; (2) infectious risk is vascular access type-dependent, with dramatic rise in catheters; (3) underutilization of blood cultures to orient diagnosis and therapy, and (4) high rates of vancomycin prescription.

[Hospital prevalence of kidney failure. Consequences and reflections for the planning of nephrology services]

A prospective prevalence study of Renal Failure (RF) in inhospital patients (creatinine > = 1.7 mg/dl) was carried out during March 1994, in two hospitals covering well defined and mutually exclusive populations. Cases were selected by screening all urea and creatinine blood tests performed in both laboratories, and registered in an individual form for daily follow-up of their nephrologic outcome. We registered 242 RF cases among 3525 patients admitted (6.8%), with an A.R.F. prevalence of 5.2%, 46% of all patients had a serum creatinine > 3 mg/dl and 71% were older than 65 years. In 55% RF was acquired inside the hospital. The most frequent cause of A.R.F. was pre-renal failure with 37%, followed by 32% of ischemic acute tubular necrosis and 13% toxic ATN. Nephrology was consulted in only 29% of all hospital RF cases. Only 17% of the RF patients were submitted to dialysis procedures, overall mortality was 31%, and 30% had normal renal function at discharge. Our results provide a data base to rethink the organization, staffing and role of nephrology departments inside general hospitals.

Mixed cryoglobulinemia in a heroin addict

Several forms of glomerulopathies have been described in patients who use intravenous heroin, including focal glomerulosclerosis, membranous nephropathy associated with chronic hepatitis B antigenemia, and immune complex proliferative glomerulonephritis. This report describes a patient who was a heroin addict for 15 years and who developed membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis and cutaneous vasculitis due to mixed cryoglobulinemia; he also had a positive hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody. Recently, an association has been described between "essential" mixed cryoglobulinemia and chronic HCV infection, which has a high prevalence in intravenous drug addict population. It is possible that mixed cryoglobulinemia-associated glomerulonephritis, occurring with chronic HCV infection, came to be considered a major cause of renal disease in heroin abusers. The possibility that HCV infection can be responsible for other types of renal involvement in intravenous drug addicts deserves further attention.

[Hemostatic changes associated with recombinant human erythropoietin (rHu Epo) treatment]

End-stage chronic renal failure (CRF) is often associated with platelet' disfunction and therefore with impaired hemostasis. Several investigators have reported that rHu Epo, used in the treatment of CRF anaemia, is able to activate a broad spectrum of hematopoietic stem cells, and therefore is able to increase the number of platelets and to induce correction of platelet disfunction. In order to investigate hemostasis changes associated with rHu Epo we studied 8 dialysis patients before and 12 weeks after rHu Epo. RHu Epo did not induce any change in the number of platelets (187710 +/- 52690 vs 204430 +/- 68710; p = NS), but seemed to improve its function (MI% of aggregation with ADP: 46.3 +/- 4.4% vs 49.1 +/- 5.3%; p less than 0.05). There was an improvement in PT (79.0 +/- 3.0% vs 87.5 +/- 8.9%; p less than 0.02) and aPTT (33.3 +/- 5.9" vs 29.3 +/- 2.1"; p less than 0.05) suggesting an improvement in platelet coagulant activities. These preliminary results indicate that rHu Epo does not increase the number of platelets but can induce a correction of platelet disfunction.

[Treatment of anemia in patients with chronic kidney insufficiency in hemodialysis with erythropoietin]

A group of 50 patients (26 men and 24 women, mean age 50 +/- 19 years and range 21 to 67) on chronic hemodialysis (HD) and with basal levels of hemoglobin (Hb) less than or equal to 8 g/dl was treated with recombinant human erythropoietin (r-HuEpo) during 3 months. r-HuEpo was started at 50 U/kg I.V. 3 times a week, immediately after each session of HD, for 4 weeks, and this dose was increased in steps of 25 U/kg until a Hb level of 12 g/dl or a maximum dose of 100 U/kg were reached. Complete blood counts and biochemical profile were performed before the first dose of r-HuEpo and once weekly and monthly respectively during the period of treatment. In 8 patients the red-cell life span was studied with cromium 51 labelled erythrocytes just before and after treatment. One patient had a grand mal seizure and the r-HuEpo was discontinued. In 44 patients the mean hematocrit increased from 21.8% to 32.1% and in the other 5 there were no response because of iron deficiency. There were no changes in leucocytes and platelets counts and consistent decreases in iron and ferritin serum concentrations were observed despite oral supplementation of iron. In the 8 patients studied the shortened erythrocyte survival did not suffer any significant variation with r-HuEpo. Predialysis creatinine, urea and phosphorus blood levels increased significantly at 3th month of treatment but there was no increase in potassium. In 32.6% of previously normotensive and hypertensive patients an increase in blood pressure was founded. Thrombosis of arteriovenous fistulas and other severe clinical side effects were not observed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)