Overnight Hemodialysis Improves Urea Reduction

Well-tolerated dialysis method also controls anemia better, study finds

THURSDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) -- Compared to conventional four- to five-hour hemodialysis, long overnight dialysis lasting six to seven hours results in a better urea reduction ratio and less anemia, according to a study published online on May 21 in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

Joanna Ruth Powell, of Western Infirmary in Glasgow, United Kingdom, and colleagues conducted a study of 146 patients who had previously had three or more consecutive sessions of long overnight hemodialysis, and the same number of controls matched for age, sex and, diabetes who were undergoing conventional duration hemodialysis.

The mean duration of long overnight hemodialysis was 2.2 years, and 33 percent of those no longer undergoing the therapy had reverted to conventional hours hemodialysis, the researchers note. Patients in the long overnight hemodialysis group had a higher urea reduction ratio and mean hemoglobin compared to their conventional hemodialysis counterparts, the investigators discovered.

"Our experience of long overnight hemodialysis in the last 10 years shows that it is a practical way for dialysis units to offer longer dialysis that is well tolerated by a substantial proportion of the hemodialysis population and does not need to be restricted to the fittest patients," the authors conclude. "There were significant improvements in urea reduction ratio and anemia but, in contrast to previous reports, no significant differences in hyperphosphatemia or hypertension. The potential impact on morbidity and mortality is the subject of on-going research."

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