Home Dialysis News

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has replied to a letter from the NRAA that expressed concern over the shortage of peritoneal dialysis (PD) solution. The FDA letter noted NRAA’s concerns and stressed the FDA’s commitment to solving drug shortages. 

While dialysis can cause blood pressure changes that damage the brain, cooling dialysis fluids can protect against such effects, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN). The cooling intervention can be delivered without additional cost and is simple to perform, the study demonstrates. 

Sometimes finding motivation requires a little nudge. And if the nudge has some purse strings attached, that’s not all bad.

The U.S. health care system is buckling under the burden of a large and growing population of patients with chronic diseases. Yet, the current medical model may not be optimal for serving the needs of these complex patients. Care of chronically ill individuals often suffers from 1) fragmentation, 2) communication gaps, 3) educational deficiencies, and 4) the episodic nature of physician visits. The model works well for younger, healthier individuals and those with acute illnesses, but the flawed current care delivery system with its consequent poor outcomes in CKD demands that newer approaches to care are needed.

NxStage Medical Inc.'s single needle technology, OneSite, has received FDA clearance. OneSite uses a dual lumen needle design offered in a sharp version with MasterGuard and a buttonhole version with SteriPick, allowing the dialysis patient to have only one needle inserted per dialysis treatment instead of two. OneSite is designed to provide patient comfort during needle insertion and dialysis treatment, as well as preservation of the patient's vascular access. The company said the product also causes the dialysis  machine to alarm and shutdown upon access dislodgement.

Four home hemodialysis patients are dialyzing with the NxStage System One while they participate in Tour DaVita, an annual bike ride to raise awareness about kidney disease. The 8th annual tour benefits DaVita Village Trust, which aims to improve community health, wellness and vitality and includes chronic kidney disease education, prevention, and treatment. The tour began Sept. 14 in Portland, Ore. and will go through the Willamette Valley. Each patient will bike up to 257 miles over the course of three days.

The Renal Physicians Association has recommended that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expedite review of the importation of additional peritoneal solution from manufacturing facilities outside of the U.S. to address Baxter Healthcare's shortage of the sterile solutions in the United States.

High- level disinfectant for all catheter caps and connections, medications port and peritoneal dialysis set disinfection. Fast-acting against bacteria, fungi, spores, mycobacteria and viruses. Reduces required contact time to 2 minutes. Stable for 180 days once opened.

The National Renal Administrators Association has asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to consider allowing peritoneal dialysis solutions to be imported from other countries to address Baxter Healthcare's shortage of the sterile solutions in the United States. In a letter to the agency, the NRAA expressed concern about the impact of the shortage on small and medium sized dialysis organizations and their patients.

Researchers from the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS) released a fresh batch of data­­––through April of this year––from its Practice Monitor yesterday, showing that while adequacy and hemoglobins have stabilized, ferritin levels may be a cause for concern.