Measurement of Hemodialysis Adequacy in a Changing World.

Defining adequacy of dialysis remains an elusive goal. The application of the Kt/Vurea concept to clinical dialysis was a major improvement in trying to define a dialysis dose. Intuitively, the Kt/V concept makes a great deal of sense: the urea clearance of the dialyzer during dialysis (K), multiplied by the time (t) of dialysis, divided by the patient's urea distribution volume (V) ought to give the best number to compare the efficiency of dialyses that patients receive. There are, however, many pitfalls associated with the whole Kt/Vurea concept.