[Urea and creatinine kinetics during the continuous hemofiltration of patients with acute kidney failure]

Continuous hemofiltration (CHF) procedures (a total of 33 with overall duration 2495 hours and replacement of 2221 kg of fluid) were conducted in 23 patients (12 males and 11 females) aged 30.5 +/- 2.5 years suffering from severe acute renal failure (ARF). CHF efficacy was judged by the kinetics of urea and creatinine. With parenteral feeding the patients received protein and amino acids 1.2-1.5 g/day/kg b.m. The death of 13 patients resulted from sepsis, hemorrhage, shock, adrenal insufficiency. The filtration speed 15.6 +/- 0.6 (7-34) ml/min allowed replacement of 21.7 +/- 1.3 (8-49) kg or 0.49 +/- 0.03 of body fluid a day. The highest rate of hemofiltration was used on day 1, this reducing plasma urea from 35.7 +/- 2.5 (7.5-55.0) to 27.5 +/- 2.0 mmol/l (p < 0.05) and creatinine from 742 +/- 77 (182-1800 to 539 +/- 44 mumol/l (p < 0.05). Subsequently urea and creatinine were maintained in the plasma at the levels 26.8 +/- 1.0 mmol/l and 539 +/- 73 mumol/l, respectively. Urea eliminated with the filtrate amounted to 591 +/- 53, creatinine 13.5 +/- 4.0 mmol or 0.49 +/- 0.02 and 0.65 +/- 0.07 of the overall pools, respectively. In anuria urea generation reached 525 +/- 35 (108-1071) mmol/day, that of creatinine 9.6 +/- 1.4 (1.2-14.0) mmol/day, being on the average less than filtrate elimination of these substances. It is believed that CHF contributes to balanced treatment of severe ARF in spite of parenteral introduction of large quantities of protein and amino acids.