Acid-base balance in hemodialysis patients in everyday practice

Abnormalities in blood bicarbonates (HCO₃^-) concentration are a common finding in patients with chronic kidney disease, especially at the end-stage renal failure. Initiating of hemodialysis does not completely solve this problem. The recommendations only formulate the target concentration of ≥22 mmol/L before hemodialysis but do not guide how to achieve it. The aim of the study was to assess the acid-base balance in everyday practice, the effect of hemodialysis session and possible correlations with clinical and biochemical parameters in stable hemodialysis patients.

We enrolled 75 stable hemodialysis patients (mean age 65.5 years, 34 women), from a single Department of Nephrology. We assessed blood pressure, and acid-base balance parameters before and after mid-week hemodialysis session.

We found significant differences in pH, HCO₃^- pCO₂, lactate before and after HD session in whole group (p < 0.001; p < 0.001; p < 0.001; p = 0.001, respectively). Buffer bicarbonate concentration had only statistically significant effect on the bicarbonate concentration after dialysis (p < 0.001). Both pre-HD acid-base parameters and post-HD pH were independent from buffer bicarbonate content. We observed significant inverse correlations between change in the serum bicarbonates and only two parameters: pH and HCO₃^- before hemodialysis (p = 0.013; p < 0.001, respectively).

Despite the improvement in hemodialysis techniques, acid-base balance still remains a challenge. The individual selection of bicarbonate in bath, based on previous single tests, does not improve permanently the acid-base balance in the population of hemodialysis patients. New guidelines how to correct acid-base disorders in hemodialysis patients are needed to have less 'acidotic' patients before hemodialysis and less 'alkalotic' patients after the session.