| [ Summary ] |
In 2008, the hemodialysis (HD) prescription of Japanese patients (JP) was as follows; frequency (f) was 3 times per week for 95％ of the patients. Dialysis time（DT）ranged between 4 hours and 4.5 hours in 65.5％ of the cases. Average DT was 3.9 hours. Blood flow rates (BFR) were between 180 ml/min and 220 ml/min in 63.3％ of the cases. Average BFR was 197 ml/min. Hence, the average JP was dialyzed for 4 hours with a BFR of 200 ml/min, three times a week. However, the life expectancy of JPs has remained less than half that of the general population. Hemodialysis product (HDP) of the average JP HD prescription is only reached 36, which is far from the recommended HDP above 70. The superiority of frequent dialysis regimens and/or longer treatment sessions has been reported. Increasing BFR has also been suggested to reduce risk of death in the JP population. Thus, it is recommended that we may improve JP survival rates by increasing f rates, extending DT, or enlarging BFR. |