ACUTE-RENAL-FAILURE - WHICH TREATMENT MODALITY IS THE BEST

Despite the progress in animal research concerning the pathophysiology and the progress in clinical practice regarding the method; of therap y, the incidence and mortality of acute renal failure remain high, esp ecially when other organs are involved. New pharmacological interventi ons have led to the perspective that in the near future it may be poss ible to prevent and/or ameliorate this devastating syndrome. Continuou s dialysis therapy and the selection of a biocompatible membrane may p ossibly help the critically ill patient especially when parenteral nut rition and correction of electrolyte and acid-base disturbances are im portant. Nevertheless, more solid data are needed and one should take into consideration that acute renal failure is a multifactorial syndro me. The type of dialysis itself is not the only matter which has to be evaluated since the mortality rate can be correlated with the number of involved organs before or after the initiation of acute renal failu re and with the severity of the original disease. In clinical practice , a large number of prospective studies and more sophisticated statist ical methodology are needed in order to evaluate the proper treatment modality.