Ultrafiltration techniques and CPB: what we know and what we think we know.

Unfortunately there have been very few prospective randomized studies comparing the clinical outcomes of patients treated with large volume ultrafiltration. Given the shortage of impressive clinical outcome data and the varying results of mediator removal studies, the application of ultrafiltration as a therapeutic technique is still a controversial topic. A few researchers have suggested that different membrane materials may have significantly different mediator removal potential. One important future direction for research in this area should include a comprehensive comparison of different membrane materials with regard to their clinical performance.