Home hemodialysis is the provision of hemodialysis to purify the blood of a person whose kidneys are not working normally, in their own home rather than a clinic. One advantage of dialysis at home is that it can be done more frequently and slowly, reducing the washed out feeling and other symptoms caused by rapid ultrafiltration, and it can often be done at night while the person sleeps. People on home hemodialysis are followed by a nephrologist who writes the dialysis prescription and rely on the support of a dialysis unit for back up treatments and case management, and studies show that home hemodialysis improves patients sense of well being, with greater knowledge of and control over their own treatment associated with better outcomes on dialysis. Home hemodialysis was introduced in the 1960s as a way to conserve scarce healthcare resources.
Facts
Disputed
Origin YearSourced to the subject's own accountMultiple groups (Boston, London, Seattle, Hokkaido) claimed to pioneer home hemodialysis in the early 1960s; who started it and the exact year is in dispute. This source places the Hokkaido group slightly ahead via Nose's 1962 PhD thesis. Connections
Treats
Home hemodialysis is a treatment option for end-stage chronic kidney disease.
Sources
1. Wikipedia
Wikipedia contributors, Wikimedia Foundationhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_hemodialysis, lead sectionQuote, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_hemodialysis, lead section
Home hemodialysis (HHD) is the provision of hemodialysis to purify the blood of a person whose kidneys are not working normally, in their own home.
2. Home Hemodialysis (Wikipedia)
WikipediaHistory section, Hokkaido paragraphQuote, History section, Hokkaido paragraph
Nose's publication of his PhD thesis (in 1962), which described treating patients outside of the hospital
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can dialysis at home feel gentler than dialysis at a clinic?
Slower and more frequent sessions at home reduce the symptoms of rapid fluid removal.
Dialysis at home can be done more frequently and slowly than a clinic schedule usually allows. Slower fluid removal reduces the washed out feeling and other symptoms caused by rapid ultrafiltration, and treatments can often be run at night while the person sleeps. Home hemodialysis is not unsupervised: a nephrologist still writes the dialysis prescription, and a dialysis unit provides back up treatments and case management. Studies also report that greater knowledge of and control over one's own treatment is associated with better outcomes.
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