Assessment of hemodialysis adequacy in patients with chronic kidney disease in the hemodialysis unit at Tanta University Hospital in Egypt

Background and objectives Worldwide, hemodialysis (HD) constitutes the most common form of renal replacement therapy and many studies have shown strong correlation between HD dose and clinical outcome measured by Kt/V. This study was conducted to evaluate HD adequacy in patients with end-stage renal disease to identify the prevalence and causes of inadequate HD and the impact of HD adequacy on patient outcomes. Patients and methods This cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 patients in the HD unit at Tanta University Hospital. All patients gave their consent and were informed about the study purpose. Data were collected using a reliable questionnaire (including clinical, demographic, dialysis, laboratory, and radiological data). SpKt/V was used to assess the adequacy of HD. Statistical analysis was carried out for all collected data using SPSS 18. Statistical significance was determined at a P-value less than 0.05. Results The results revealed inadequate HD dose in 60% of the study population. The results also showed that, with increasing time and frequency of dialysis, blood flow rates, low recirculation percentages, reduction of intradialytic complaints, and well-functioning vascular access are associated with better HD adequacy. Our findings clearly showed a strong positive correlation between dialysis dose and Hb level, serum albumin level, normalized protein catabolic rate, and physical health. Conclusion A significant percentage of patients had inadequate HD. HD adequacy was influenced by several factors such as duration and frequency of the dialysis session, patients′ complaints, and well-functioning vascular access.