Hemodiafiltration is associated with reduced inflammation, oxidative stress and improved endothelial risk profile compared to high-flux hemodialysis in children

Randomized trials in adults have shown reduced all-cause and cardiovascular mortality on hemodiafiltration (HDF) compared to high-flux hemodialysis (HD), but the mechanisms leading to improved outcomes are not clear. We studied biomarkers of inflammation, oxidative stress, anti-oxidant capacity and endothelial dysfunction in 22 children (13 female, age 8-15 years). All children received HD for at least 3 months, and were then switched to HDF, keeping all dialysis related parameters and dialysis time constant. All the biomarkers of inflammation (ß2-microglobulin, IL-6, IL-10, high sensitive C-reactive protein [hsCRP]), oxidative stress (nitrotyrosine, advanced glycation end-products [AGEs], oxidized low density lipoprotein [ox-LDL] and anti-oxidant capacity) and endothelial dysfunction (asymmetric dimethyl arginine [ADMA], symmetric dimethyl arginine [SDMA]), were comparable between incident and prevalent patients on HD, suggesting that even a short dialysis vintage of 3 months on HD increases inflammation and endothelial stress. After 3 months of HDF therapy there was a significant reduction in ß2-microglobulin (p