The importance of pure water in dialysis

Hemodialysis is a biomedical procedure, applied in patients with chronic kidney failure, to remove impurities, toxins, and additional fluid from the blood. It is an external filtration for the blood when the kidneys can’t do their function adequately. The concentration and quality of the water play a vital role in the preparation of dialysis fluid.

Dialysis patients are exposed to  2-3 liters of fluid per day and also exposed to water-borne diseases. It must be ensured that water should be safe and free of all sorts of endotoxins either viral or bacterial. Standard town water contains inorganic and organic ions, including chlorine, which makes it unsuitable for hemodialysis.

Ultrapure water increases the survival rate in patients with chronic renal failure. Dialyzers contain external fluid which has to be used in patients to extract impurities.

In normal individuals, drinking water interacts with various organs, such as the gastrointestinal tract, kidneys, and liver helping toxin removal and preventing absorption into the bloodstream. Patients with renal disease lack such internal filtration mechanism and dialysis is the only way to remove impurities from the blood.

Impurities in the water, decrease the efficiency of dialysis and increase the risks for the patient:

• Bacteria or endotoxins can enter the blood and cause septicemia.
• Oxidising disinfectants typically present in drinking water, such as chloramine and chlorine, can damage or destroy red blood cells in patients undergoing dialysis.
• Hardness in water has undesired effects such as vomiting during dialysis, weakness during and after the procedure and changes in blood pressure.

The use of ultrapure water is proven to generate better hemoglobin levels and a reduction in anemia and inflammatory markers.

A typical water purification system for dialysis includes:

• Water softening equipment to reduce hardness in water
• Activated carbon filters to remove organic matter and chlorine
• Reverse Osmosis unit to remove dissolved ions 
• When water storage is used before distribution to the dialysis units: UV disinfection or UF filtration is also required

Feel free to contact one of our experts at info@watercore.com.au