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. One advantage to doing dialysis at home is that it can be done more frequently and slowly, which reduces the "washed out" feeling and other symptoms caused by rapid ultrafiltration, and it can often be done at night, while the person is sleeping.
People on home hemodialysis are followed by a nephrologist who writes the dialysis prescription and they rely on the support of a dialysis unit for back-up treatments and case management. Studies show that HHD improves patients' sense of well-being; the more they know about and control their own treatment the better they are likely to do on dialysis.National Kidney Foundation: A to Z Health Guide
HHD was introduced in the 1960s as a way to conserve scarce healthcare resources.
Schedules There are three basic schedules of HHD and these are differentiated by the length and frequency of dialysis and the time of day the dialysis is carried out. They are as follows: Conventional HHD – done three times a week for three to five hours. It is like in-centre hemodialysis (IHD), but done at home. Some patients utilize a modified conventional "EOD" (Every Other Day) strategy in which treatments are performed an average of 3.5 times a week. It is generally accepted that the "3 day gap" that occurs once a week in conventional HHD on the normal 3x/week schedule increases risk to the patient. Short daily home hemodialysis (SDHHD) – done five to seven times a week, for two to four hours per session. Nocturnal home hemodialysis (NHHD) – done three to seven times per week at night during sleep, for six to ten hours.
Thus an NHHD schedule results in a larger dose of hemodialysis per week, as do some SDHHD. More total time dialyzing, shorter periods between treatments and the fact that fluid removal speeds can be lower (thus reducing the symptoms resulting from rapid ultrafiltration), accounts for the advantages of these schedules over conventional ones.
A frequent NHHD schedule has been shown to have better clinical outcomes than a conventional schedule and evidence is mounting that clinical outcomes are improved with each increase in treatment frequency.
Differences between home hemodialysis schedules When compared with the other schedules, nocturnal dialysis results in reduced strain on the heart during dialysis. The ultrafiltration rate (UFR) in nocturnal dialysis is lower than in CHD (and SDHHD) Frequent nocturnal hemodialysis can improve left ventricular mass measures, reduce the need for blood pressure medications, improve some measures of mineral metabolism, and improve selected measures of quality of life. When compared with other schedules, nocturnal dialysis results in higher clearance of large and medium-sized molecules (that are diffusion-limited). Nocturnal dialysis and SDHHD treatment regimens provide a higher dialysis dose; they have a higher a std Kt/V and HDP than IHD treatment regimens. Short dialysis (at home) five times a week is thought to reduce renal osteodystrophy. SDHHD and nocturnal dialysis avoid large fluid shifts typical in hemodialysis performed in a healthcare setting after dialysis sessions. These fluid shifts can cause nausea, cramping, and 'wash-out'.
Advantages of nocturnal home hemodialysis
Better blood pressure management—less need for blood pressure medications. Avoidance of intradialytic hypotension (i.e. low blood pressure during dialysis), something relatively common in IHD. More energy and less 'wash-out' after treatment. Decreased prevalence of sleep apnea or improvement in severe cases of sleep apnea – sleep better. Less expensive overall for the health system due to lower rates of hospitalization and savings on nursing. Less dietary restrictions—e.g., phosphate binders, kidney failure food restrictions. More control over the dialysis treatment schedule and greater life satisfaction. Live longer, according to a case-cohort study. Cardiovascular disease in ESRD patients is the leading cause of mortality. Nocturnal hemodialysis is thought to improve ejection fraction (an important measure of cardiac function) and lead to a regression in left ventricular hypertrophy. A benefit of 6x/week nocturnal hemodialysis on left ventricular hypertrophy was demonstrated in a randomized controlled trial.
Disadvantages of nocturnal home hemodialysis Training is usually done during business hours, as often as five times a week. Training can take from 2 to 8 weeks at which time one is dialyzed incenter, often in a separate home hemodialysis training unit. Introducing dialysis into the home will impact everyone in the home, for good and bad. Space is needed for the dialysis machine and supplies. One may face increased utility costs. (Some utilities have accommodations available) Supply management may require time during business hours e.g. to receive deliveries, to drop off blood draws. May require trip to center once a month for iron and case management. If nocturnal dialysis is chosen some night's sleep can be disrupted due to machine alarms. Experience from LynchburgHome Dialysis Central, Types of Home Dialysis: Nocturnal Home Hemodialysis, URL: http://homedialysis.org/v1/types/nhh_01.shtml#10 , Accessed on July 15, 2005. suggests it happens once every 10 days for people using a fistula and 1-2 times per night if using a catheter.
Barriers to home hemodialysis
Knowledge barriers Lack of awareness amongst patients – most patients with kidney disease in the USA are not informed of home hemodialysis as a treatment option for end-stage renal disease. One US study found that 36% of patients did not have contact with a nephrologist until less than 4 months prior to their first dialysis session and that only 12% of patients were offered home hemodialysis as a treatment option. Lack of awareness for nephrologists. The lack of familiarity with home hemodialysis makes them less likely to offer it to suitable patients.
Patient factors: in general Disability or frailty. Patient fear of needles/self-cannulation. Patient belief that they will get better care in hospital. Lack of significant other to assist with HHD. Some clinics require a significant other and require that the significant other be trained. Desire to compartmentalize disease – avoid creating a "sick home"; wish to think of illness only at treatment center. Have suitable space and facilities or an area that could be adapted within their home environment Have the ability and motivation to learn to carry out the process. Commitment to maintain treatment. Are stable on dialysis (see next section for further details on adherence issues) and free of complications and significant concomitant disease that would render home dialysis unsuitable or unsafe.
Patient factors: barriers to home dialysis from non-adherence to regimes Fluid adherence is influenced by a heightened sense of thirst. Possible cognitive executive functioning issues associated with conditions of uremia due to end-stage kidney disease. This may affect memory, ability to plan effectively, and keeping to schedules. High levels of depression and anxiety are also typically associated with end-state kidney disease and the resulting life style changes, also contributing to reduced cognitive and behavioral functioning, and negative illness schemas. These factors may influence both motivation and capacity for adherence/compliance to regimes.
Patient factors: addressing dialysis non-adherence Cognitive behavioural therapy has been shown to be effective with dialysis patients to address levels of depression, specific phobias/fears, and to decrease levels of anxiety. Use of psychoeducation to assist patient and carers understanding and insights into non-adherence issues.
Health care funding models Incenter dialysis and home hemodialysis are reimbursed to exactly the same amounts in the United States under the ESRD program. From CMS's point of view any form of dialysis is still more expensive than renal transplantation if looked at over a three-year period. A good kidney transplant (one that lasts five years) remains the cheapest long term renal replacement therapy. In many jurisdictions doctors are not compensated to facilitate/encourage home dialysis; in the USA most kidney doctors are not paid for discussing different treatment options with their patients. In fact compared to the Medicare reimbursement if the doctor rounds incenter weekly, Medicare reimbursement to follow someone at home is less per month. In the US to recoup the unreimbursed cost of training providers need people with Medicare as their primary insurer to dialyze at home for approximately one year. HHD requires a large initial capital expenditure, as each HHD patient requires their own dialysis machine and lengthy (expensive) training. Significant savings and benefits (for the society) from HHD are realized in the long term because of better health outcomes for patients and lower rates of hospitalization, higher productivity of ESRD patients (more can hold down steady jobs and contribute to society) and lower (nursing) labour costs. Dialysis providers only stand to benefit from (3) (lower nursing costs) as the other costs (1) (poorer health) and (2) (lower productivity), as currently structured, are externalized to society. With the expensive training and hemodialysis equipment required, the return on investment is high only for long-term home hemodialysis patients.
History of home hemodialysis Home hemodialysis started in the early 1960s. Who started it is in dispute. Groups in Boston, London, Seattle and Hokkaidō all have a claim.
The Hokkaidō group was slightly ahead of the others, with Nosé's publication of his PhD thesis (in 1962), which described treating patients outside of the hospital for acute kidney injury due to drug overdoses. In 1963, he attempted to publish these cases in the ASAIO Journal but was unsuccessful, which was later described in the ASAIO Journal when people were invited to write about unconventional/crazy rejected papers. That these treatments took place in people's homes is hotly disputed by Shaldon and he has accused Nosé of a faulty memory and not being completely honest, as allegedly revealed by some shared Polish Vodka, many years earlier.
The Seattle group (originally the Seattle Artificial Kidney Center, later the Northwest Kidney Centers) started their home program in July 1964. It was inspired by the fifteen-year-old daughter of a collaborator's friend, who went into kidney failure due to lupus erythematosus, and had been denied access to dialysis by their patient selection committee. Dialysis treatment at home was the only alternative and managed to extend her life another four years. Dr. Chris Blagg has stated that the first training predated the establishment of the home program: the "first home patient wasn't part of our program at all, he was president of a big Indian corporation, lived in Madras, and he came to Seattle just before I came in '63. He came in early '63, again, with his doctor and his wife and Dr. Scribner trained them to do dialysis at home and they went home to Madras."Christopher Blagg, MD Transcript Voice Expeditions Oral History http://www.voiceexpeditions.com/index.php?id=287dead link
In September 1964 the London group (led by Shaldon) started dialysis treatment at home. In the late 1960s, Shaldon introduced HHD in Germany.