Failure of a daily haemofiltration programme using a highly permeable membrane to return β ₂ -microglobulin concentrations to normal in haemodialysis patients

In an attempt to return to normal serum β ₂ -microglobulin levels in a group of seven ESRD patients, a programme of daily HF with highly permeable AN69 membranes was undertaken. Pre-HF β ₂ -M serum levels stabilized after 4 days at 20 mg/1, only 40% lower than the initial concentration. A total of 985 ±20 mg β ₂ -M was removed over the week. The β ₂ -M release rate averaged 97 μg/min with a broad range of values (63-128 μg/min). β ₂ -M release peaked at 602 μg/min 1 h after the end of the HF session before returning to baseline by 12 h post-HF. We conclude that a return to normal blood β ₂ -M concentrations in ESRD patients seems quite unrealistic despite a highly intensive extracorporeal therapy. Therefore other therapeutic alternatives have to be designed to prevent or cure β ₂ -M amyloidosis.