| [ Summary ] |
Levels of blood urea nitrogen or serum creatinine concentrations alone cannot determine whether a patient need dialysis therapy. In chronic renal failure, it is imperative to confirm that renal failure is irreversible and that dialysis therapy is the method of choice by the patient and the family after they are informed of what the quality of life may be with dialysis. In case of acute renal failure, patients should be dialyzed when they are complicated with uremic emergencies, including hyperkalemia, pulmonary edema, encephalopathy, bleeding tendency, and uremic pericarditis. In addition, patients with catabolic acute renal failure, where azotemia, hyperklemia, and metabolic acidosis are progressive, must be agressively dialyzed, while non-catabolic renal failure can often be managed without dialysis. |