[Health-related quality of life in patients with chronic kidney disease].

Assessment of quality of life in patients with different degrees of chronic kidney disease is an important issue because of its impact on clinical decisions and financial resource management in the health-care system. The aim of this study was to assess whether a generic instrument like the SF-36 questionnaire is able to discriminate three different populations of patients with different degrees of renal disease (pre-ESRD, ESRD, TxR). Five hundred sixty-three patients from 12 Italian nephrology units completed the SF-36 scales by themselves.

[Hypertension and fluid volume increase in uremic patients treated with convective hemodialysis: electric bioimpedence analysis].

Purpose: Hypertension is considered an important cardiovascular (CV) risk for uremic patients on hemodialysis (HD). Its main pathogenetic factor is the extracellular fluid volume increase.

Methods: This study aimed to evaluate the water distribution by electric bioimpedence (BIA) in hypertensive uremic patients treated with convective hemodialysis (HD) (group A) and with diffusive HD (group B).

[Acquired cystic kidney disease (ACKD): experience of a dialysis center].

Acquired cystic kidney disease (ACKD) is characterized by the substitution of renal parenchyma with multiple cysts in patients either with end stage renal disease who are treated for uremia with dialysis (as on haemodialysis--HD--as on peritoneal dialysis--PD) due to non cystic kidney diseases. The aim of our study was to value the prevalence of ACKD in our haemodialysed patients (with exclusion of polycystic disease and obstructive nephropathy), its relationship between clinical and bioumoral parameters, and its complications in the follow-up. We have studied 56 uremic patients (32f and 24m) on bicarbonate HD three in a week.