Vascular access in children on chronic hemodialysis: a Slovenian experience.

The aim of our study was to report our experience with arteriovenous fistulas (AVFs) and non-cuffed central venous catheters (CVCs) in children and adolescents with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on hemodialysis (HD). The children with ESRD (18 years or younger) who were hemodialyzed at the Center of Dialysis and Transplantation, Children's Hospital, Ljubljana, in the period between December 1998 and December 2010 were included in our retrospective study. We recorded the data considering the CVCs and AVFs used for HD. Thirty-one children (13 females, 18 males) with ESRD received HD treatment. The mean patient age when HD was started was 13.3 ± 3.4 years. Altogether, 35 AVFs were created, and the primary failure rate was 25.7% (9/35). The time to maturation was 4.0 ± 2.5 months. The mean patency of the AVF was 42.5 ± 51.9 months. Seventy-seven CVCs (non-cuffed) were inserted in the observation period; 89.6% of the CVCs were inserted in the jugular vein, and citrate locking was used in the interdialysis period. The CVCs were removed after 0.1-17.4 months (3.6 ± 3.7 months). The incidence of bacteremia was 0.9 episodes per 1000 catheter days. The preferred vascular accesses for pediatric hemodialysis are native AVFs; however, a single lumen, non-cuffed, citrate-locked CVC placed in a jugular vein can be acceptable as a long-term vascular access when AVF cannot be constructed or used.