title: Comparison of approximate and iterative methods to calculate the efficiency of haemodialysis as KT/V.
abstract: Dialysis dose is given by the index KT/V, where K is the dialyser urea clearance, T the duration of dialysis and V the notional urea distribution volume. KT/V may be calculated using the single pool model and an iterative calculation which requires a computer program. Three estimates of KT/V, each based on simple correction of the log ratio in (C0/C1), where C0, C1 denote the pre- and post-dialysis blood urea concentrations in mg/ml, were developed and compared with the values of KT/V given by iteration. The first estimate was given by adding two terms to the log ratio to account for the effect of ultrafiltration and urea generation while the second and third estimates were given by increasing the log ratio by 12.5% and 15% respectively. All estimates gave good agreement when compared with the iterative technique by Bland-Altman analysis for 27 patients on standard 4 hour dialysis treatment using 4 different dialysers (0.71 < KT/V < 1.62). The mean difference in all cases was less than 0.025 and the differences were not clinically significant. The use of these approximate formulae to estimate dialysis efficiency avoids the need for complex calculation or additional blood samples.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Physics, St James's University Hospital, Leeds, UK.
authors.forename: S W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Smye
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lewis
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Will
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bartlett
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003198:Computer Simulation; D005260:Female; D006400:Hematocrit; D006801:Humans; D007677:Kidney Function Tests; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D011786:Quality Control; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results