Making kidney dialysis safer

Cardiovascular disease is far more common in people with kidney disease than in people who don’t have kidney disease. This is due to the effects of kidney disease itself, but also due to kidney dialysis. This is an essential weekly treatment for people with severe kidney disease. Dialysis removes toxic substances from the blood. Unfortunately, a side effect of dialysis is low blood oxygen levels. This is very common and can cause many problems that reduce quality of life and increase the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. The causes of this low blood oxygen level during dialysis are not well understood. As a result, good treatments are not available.

The aim of this research project by Dr Scott McGuire and colleagues at Health and Life Sciences, Coventry University is to better understand the causes of low blood oxygen levels during dialysis. Dr McGuire will do this by measuring oxygen levels at regular intervals during dialysis in 50 people. By measuring other things such as blood pH (how acidic the blood is), how many white blood cells there are, and how well blood is flowing around the body, the team will get a good idea of what is causing low blood oxygen levels. It is hoped that this will lead to simple treatments to avoid low blood oxygen levels during dialysis. This research, funded by the Medical and Life Sciences Research Fund should help to make dialysis safer in the future.