Kidney patients: dialysis better at night

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MunichKidney patients who go on dialysis at night are better off than their fellow sufferers - physically, but also mentally.

When the kidneys aren't working, machines have to detoxify and drain the blood. That costs patients many hours every week. But they can also be moved into the night - and kidney patients benefit from this in several ways.

Better chances of survival

On the one hand, their life expectancy is increasing: within four years, 17 percent fewer of them died in a study than in a comparison group with patients whose blood was washed during the day. This could be said so precisely because each of the 1150 night dialysis patients was compared with around five patients with the same risk profile, but who were treated during the day.

The possible reason for the effect: you take more time at night. The weekly dialysis times are then 24 instead of the usual twelve hours, which is apparently gentler. This is indicated by better blood pressure and metabolic values. The patients also needed significantly less medication.

Higher quality of life

In addition, dialysis at night also improves the quality of life, showed a subsequent survey of around 500 night dialysis patients. The plus in satisfaction corresponded to 85 percent of the hopes that the patients had placed in night therapy. In particular, it enabled them to have a more normal daily routine and better opportunities to do their jobs.

Nightly risks

However, night dialysis is not entirely unproblematic.Great care must be taken to ensure that the needles do not slip out during sleep. The arm must therefore be firmly fixed and the venous pressure monitored. Monitoring is also more complex. Overall, the measure is therefore expensive. Currently only a third of the treatment centers offer night dialysis.

The German Society for Nephrology estimates that around 70,000 patients currently have regular dialysis. The only alternative is a kidney transplant, which, due to the prevailing shortage of organ donors, can only be offered to a few. (cf)

Sources:

Press release Kuratorium für Dialysis und Nierentransplantation e.V "Night dialysis increases life expectancy and quality", December 4, 2014

German Society for Nephrology, www.dgfn.eu, accessed December 18, 2014

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