Renal Replacement Therapy

On September 11, 1945, Kolff performed the first successful hemodialysis session in history. The replacement of kidney function with artificial dialysis is one of the triumphs of modern medicine and technology, and has prolonged the lives of millions of individuals around the world.  Several challenges remain in renal replacement therapy for individuals with kidney failure. Much of the world’s population does not have access to renal replacement therapy due to economic and social inequalities. The technologies for renal replacement therapy have improved since the first successful use of hemodialysis, but our treatment options remain in principle very similar to Kolff’s apparatus. We conduct patient-oriented research in dialysis and continuous renal replacement therapies, ranging from epidemiology studies to physiologically-oriented studies to randomized controlled trials.

SELECTED PAPERS FROM OUR RESEARCH INCLUDE:

• Reductions in red blood cell 2,3-diphosphoglycerate concentration during continuous renal replacment therapy.
• Optimal dialysate sodium-what is the evidence?
• Phosphate balance in continuous venovenous hemofiltration.
• Dialysis dose and intradialytic hypotension: results from the HEMO study.
• Dialysate sodium, serum sodium and mortality in maintenance hemodialysis.
• Preservation of blood pressure stability with hypertonic mannitol during hemodialysis initiation.
• Dialysate sodium and the milieu intérieur.
• Mortality associated with low serum sodium concentration in maintenance hemodialysis.

For more information:

• Harvard Stem Cell Institute: Stem cells for engineering new kidneys
• The UCSF Kidney Project:  Bioartificial kidney