Experience with the Hemasite device in haemodialysis and haemofiltration patients with vascular access problems.

Multiple vascular access failure is a frequent problem and we report our experience with 32 Hemasite devices implanted in 28 patients with end-stage renal disease. All of the patients were on maintenance haemodialysis or haemofiltration with a range of treatment of 1-17 years. Their mean age was 58 +/- 14 years (range 28-72 years). The main indication for using this device as an alternative vascular access was the presence of high-risk patients with a high incidence of previous access failure (1-8 accesses per patient). The majority of the patients were considered as high risk, due either to old age (more than 60 years) (60%) or to the presence of diabetes mellitus (29%). The results of 5 years' experience and follow-up showed that the Hemasite device could be successfully used as a secondary vascular access in high-risk patients who have problems of multiple access failures. The 1-year cumulative survival of the device (55%) was affected by complications such as thrombosis and infection (47% and 16%) which were noted mostly among patients with diabetes mellitus. These complications are the major ones endangering the longevity of the Hemasite implant and were important causes of implant loss (31% and 6% respectively). Being needleless and painless, the Hemasite was well-accepted by the patients and it functioned well, with adequate blood flow. We conclude that the Hemasite device is a valuable alternative when vascular access becomes a problem in haemodialysis patients.