Novel Approach for Bacteremia Detection in Patients with End-Stage Renal Failure Undergoing Hemodialysis

Abstract

Severe systemic infections are one of the leading causes of death in patients with end-stage renal disease and are often associated with hospitalization. Since bacteria can be identified in used hemo-filters in an ICU setting, it was investigated whether this method might be useful in patients undergoing regular intermittent hemodialysis. By analyzing used hemodialyzers in (n = 13) patients, we identified systemic bacteremia in two patients (15.4%) while corresponding blood cultures were negative. In two further patients, positive microbiological findings from hemodialyzers appeared to be of unclear clinical relevance. Cultures from hemodialyzers might be an add-on approach for the identification of bacteria in the blood stream of patients undergoing regular intermittent hemodialysis.