Tehran University Medical Journal

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Background: Cardiovascular problems including arterial hypertension, coronary artery diseases, congestive heart failure are prevalent among chronic hemodialyzed patients. Ultrafiltration of hemodialyzed patient's serum, which culminating in intravascular volume reduction, is frequently used during hemodialysis. One of the restrictions of the echocardiographic evaluation of the diastolic heart function is the intravascular volume dependency of some echocardiographic parameters. In this study we have evaluated the volume dependency of certain echocardiography parameters in chronically hemodialyzed patients.

Methods: Thirteen patients undergoing chronic hemodialysis in Ghaem Hospital Hemodialysis Center in Mashhad, Iran, were evaluated one hour before and immediately after hemodialysis for the following: all diastolic echocardiographic parameters, left ventricular function, left ventricular systolic function, inferior vena cava (IVC) diameter and IVC collapsibility with inspiration, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The echocardiographic parameters were analyzed using the paired Student's t-test.

Results: With hemodialysis, there was no significant change in left ventricular function, A wave amplitude and E/F slope, however, there was a significant reduction of the E wave amplitude, increment in E wave deceleration time (p= 0.001, t=-4.14) and a decrease in the E/A ratio (p=0.03, t=2.46). Tissue Doppler echocardiography showed no significant change in mitral annular diastolic motion, E'/A' waves, with hemodialysis (p=0.728, t= - 0.356), although there was a reduction of the E/E' ratio.

Conclusion: Tissue Doppler imaging and color M-mode echocardiographic parameters are independent of the intravascular value status. With no change associated with hemodialysis, these parameters can be used as reliable criteria for evaluating ventricular diastolic function even when the volume status varies.

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Background: The effect of kind of dialysis solution on the control of blood pressure and adequacy and efficacy of hemodialysis is a most debated and controversial issue.
Methods: Twenty six chronic hemodialized patients in Ghaem hemodialysis center, Mashhad, Iran, in winter of the year 2004, enrolled this study for one month. The patients were dialyzed with bicarbonate buffer and were dialyzed in the next month with acetate. The kind of membranes and the dialysis machines were the same in both months. Systolic and diastolic pressures were measured before and after hemodialysis in at least three hemodialysis sessions, and he means recorded. The mean of the body weight were also recorded. In the same sessions of hemodialysis by measuring the urea, before and after hemodialysis, urea reduction ratio (URR), was also calculated. Statistical analysis was done with paired student t test for paired measurement, and independent t test for evaluating the effect of the kind of dialysate buffer on the measured parameters.
Results: There were no significant statistical differences between acetate and bicarbonate dialysis solution buffers in the control of diastolic blood pressure. But use of acetate buffer resulted in more significant systolic blood pressure reduction compared with bicarbonate buffer (p=0.045). When adequacy of hemodialysis were compared between two kinds of buffers there were no significant statistical differences between them. When the effect of dialysate sodium concentration in the range utilized in two buffers, was evaluated on the systolic and diastolic pressure reduction, no significant differences, between two types of buffers attributable to the difference between dialysates sodium concentrations were found.
Conclusion: Hemodialysis with both, acetate and bicarbonate buffers results in significant reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, weight and urea ratio. Use of acetate buffer is more significantly associated with systolic blood pressure reduction compared to bicarbonate buffer (p=0.045), this effect is independent of the dialysate buffer sodium concentration.