Continuous hemofiltration in patients with acute renal failure

Many intensive care unit (ICU) patients with acute renal failure (ARF) have multiple organ failure (MOF) and cardiovascular instability. Continuous hemofiltration (CH) is a widely accepted technique for the treatment of such critically ill patients. The authors treated ten patients with ARF and MOF. Continuous arteriovenous hemofiltration (CAVH) and venovenous hemofiltration (CVVH) were performed in five patients each. The mean duration of treatment was 88.6 +/- 82.8 h and the mean ultrafiltrate rate 392 +/- 272 ml/min. Serum urea i creatinine were stable, with good control of fluid balance. Only two of our patients survived: one of them recovered renal function and the other required chronic hemodialysis (HD). CVVH offered better control of blood flow and ultrafiltration rate, longer hemofilter use and has the advantage of requiring only venous access.