Renal replacement therapy with high-cutoff hemofilters: Impact of convection and diffusion on cytokine clearances and protein status.

Background: High-cutoff hemofilters are characterized by an increased effective pore size designed to facilitate the elimination of inflammatory mediators in sepsis. This study compares diffusive versus convective high-cutoff renal replacement therapy (RRT) in terms of cytokine clearance rates and effects on plasma protein levels.

Methods: Twenty-four patients with sepsis-induced acute renal failure were studied.