| Theme | Blood Access for Chronic Hemodialysis Therapy -- The Present Problems and New Developments | |
|---|---|---|
| Title | Explanation of DOQI : Clinical Practice Guidelines for Vascular Access | |
| Publish Date | 2000/07 | |
| Author | Seiji Ohira | Department of Surgery and Kidney Center, Nikko Memorial Hospital |
| Author | Yasushige Tsuji | Department of Surgery and Kidney Center, Nikko Memorial Hospital |
| Author | Noritomo Itami | Department of Surgery and Kidney Center, Nikko Memorial Hospital |
| [ Summary ] | Blood or vascular access is essential for chronic hemodialysis and is considered to be both a life line and an Achilles' heel. The most desirable method is to create blood access between the Radial artery and Cephalic vein (arteriovenous fistula; AVF) at the wrist. Howevere, modified methods are often applied. Furthermore, artificaial vessels must often be used in cases in which the patient's veins have sustained damage. In Japan, AVFs using artificial vessels account for about 5% of all blood access, while in the USA they account for approximately 70%, as seen in some reports. Guidelines, which are as objective as possible, for creating and maintaining blood access have been anticipated. In 1997, the National Kidney Foundation in the USA presented the Dialysis Outcomes Quality Initiative (DOQITM) Clinical Practice Guidelines for Vascular Access, which was introduced and explained briefly in this paper. |
|