The therapeutic effect of hemodialysis on schizophrenia: comments and further possibilities

Intermittent hemodialysis was recently found to have a therapeutic effect on schizophrenia, pointing to biochemical disturbances and possibly to renal malfunction as the cause of some forms of mental disorder. This paper points out that intermittent hemodialysis is not equally effective for the elimination of all solutes in the plasma. It can dispose of significant quantities of substances for which the normal urine/plasma concentration ratio is small, not of substances which the kidney concentrates in the urine by a large factor. It is further pointed out that for substances with a small urine/plasma concentration ratio thermogenic sweating could also constitute an effective means of disposal and its use is suggested as possible alternative to hemodialysis.