Nephrology, dialysis, transplantation : official publication of the European Dialysis and Transplant Association - European Renal Association
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Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. · Oct 2006
Multicenter StudyStarting and withdrawing haemodialysis--associations between nephrologists' opinions, patient characteristics and practice patterns (data from the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study).
The incidence and prevalence of haemodialysis vary widely across countries. The variation may be attributable to differences in the incidence of end-stage renal disease and/or in the availability of haemodialysis. Previous studies have identified differences in nephrologists' opinions about the availability of haemodialysis and its appropriateness for patients with comorbidities. We studied the associations between nephrologists' opinions, availability of haemodialysis, patient characteristics and comorbidities, and facilities' withdrawal rates. ⋯ Differences within and across countries in nephrologists' opinions regarding starting and withdrawing haemodialysis reflect differences in access to haemodialysis and the practice of withdrawal of haemodialysis in their facilities.
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Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. · Oct 2006
Multicenter StudyWeekly low-dose treatment with intravenous iron sucrose maintains iron status and decreases epoetin requirement in iron-replete haemodialysis patients.
Haemodialysis patients need sustained treatment with intravenous iron because iron deficiency limits the efficacy of recombinant human epoetin therapy in these patients. However, the optimal intravenous iron maintenance dose has not been established yet. ⋯ A regular 50 mg weekly dosing schedule of iron sucrose maintains stable iron stores and haemoglobin levels in haemodialysed patients and allows considerable dose reductions for epoetins. Low-dose intravenous iron therapy may represent an optimal approach to treat the continuous loss of iron in dialysis patients.