Impact of inflow reduction of arteriovenous fistula on systemic hemodynamics in a patient with high-output heart failure during hemodialysis: A case report

Summary A 68-year-old woman was admitted with dyspnea. The patient had been treated with hemodialysis for renal failure for 11 years. On admission, chest X-ray showed pulmonary edema. Right-heart catheterization revealed high cardiac output (11.8 l/min) and elevated pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP). Doppler ultrasonography showed high-flow of an arteriovenous fistula (AVF) for hemodialysis. The patient was diagnosed as having high-output heart failure due to a high-flow AVF. Inflow reduction of the AVF was performed by proximal radial artery ligation. Right-heart catheterization performed 2 weeks after the operation revealed that cardiac output had decreased from 11.8 to 9.5 l/min and PCWP was also reduced from 21 to 9 mmHg. Furthermore, flow of the AVF measured by Doppler ultrasonography was also decreased. To our knowledge, this is the first report that assessed hemodynamics of high-output heart failure before and after inflow reduction of the AVF by repeated right-heart catheterization.