13 BPU346364.indd

β 2 -Microglobulin (β 2 -MG) is the substance that causes dialysis amyloidosis, and its predialysis value is useful for evaluating the quality of dialysis therapy itself. In addition, β 2 -MG is also an important biomarker for evaluating the removal performance of hemodialysis and hemodiafiltration (HDF). However, since β 2 -MG has a molecular weight of 11.8 kDa and can be efficiently removed by diffusion with existing high-performance dialyzers, a higher molecular weight substance should be used for evaluating removal performance of HDF, in which diffusion and convection are performed simultaneously. α 1 -Microglobulin (α 1 -MG) has a molecular weight of 33 kDa, and it is removed by convection during dialysis. When we used α 1 -MG to evaluate the removal performance of HDF in a study based on our own cases, we were able to describe the distinctive features and benefits of HDF with precision. α 1 -MG removal rate exactly paralleled the changes in symptoms. Kt/V and the β 2 -MG removal rate, however, did not undergo significant changes as the symptoms fluctuated. α 1 -MG should be used as a biomarker for evaluation of clinical outcomes of HDF. Copyright © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel Published online: February 25, 2013 Kenji Sakurai Hashimoto Clinic 3-21-5, Hashimoto, Midori-ku Sagamihara-shi Kanagawa 252-0143 (Japan) E-Mail ssakurai @ peach.ocn.ne.jp E-Mail [email protected] © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel 0253–5068/13/0351–0064$38.00/0 www.karger.com/bpu Th is is an Open Access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License (www.karger.com/OA-license), applicable to the online version of the article only. Distribution for non-commercial purposes only. D ow nl oa de d by : 54 .7 0. 40 .1 1 11 /2 4/ 20 17 3 :4 2: 05 P M