A new approach to optimizing urea clearances in hemodialysis and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis.

Recent studies suggest that the relationship of the net normalized protein catabolic rate (which is the normalized protein equivalent of nitrogen appearance [nPNA]) to the weekly clearance of urea normalized to total body water (Kt/V urea) in patients on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) is curvilinear, rather than linear, as has been thought. The authors have reexamined the relationship of nPNA to weekly Kt/V urea in a CAPD population by cross-sectional analysis to see if the curvilinear definition of the relationship is as good as or better than the usual linear description. They also examined this relationship in the hemodialysis populations at the Dialysis Clinics Inc. in Columbia, Missouri, and in the Renal Kidney Disease Program in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It seems obvious that there should be a plateau of nPNA in each therapy because extension of linear regressions would predict protein intakes of normal individuals exceeding 8 g/kg/body weight/day. The authors compared their findings to other published results. Intuitively and analytically, the curvilinear relationships seem likely. The authors observed that the nPNA plateau is achieved at lower Kt/V in patients on CAPD than in those on hemodialysis, which is compatible with the peak concentration hypothesis. Asymptotes for CAPD and hemodialysis are similar. Weekly Kt/V urea requirements to achieve nPNA values at 95% of the asymptote are greater than those usually delivered. However, such nearly complete elimination of uremic appetite suppression may not be practical or necessary for achieving acceptable nutritional status and long-term survival in most patients. Optimum therapy may be well above adequate therapy relative to minimizing appetite suppression by uremia.