Effect of dialysate osmolarity on the transport of low-molecular weight solutes and proteins during CAPD.

Osmotic-induced fluid and solute transport was studied in ten stable CAPD patients, who were examined twice within one week, using dialysate with 1.36% glucose on the first and 3.86% glucose on the second day. Peritoneal fluid kinetics were determined using intraperitoneally administered dextran 70 as a volume marker. After a four-hour dwell period, an increase in mean transcapillary ultrafiltration rate (TCUFR) with 3.86% glucose compared to 1.36% glucose was found (3.40 +/- 0.62 ml/min vs. 1.20 +/- 0.57, P < 0.001), but the lymphatic absorption was unchanged (1.32 +/- 0.10 ml/min vs. 1.42 +/- 0.15). The increased TCUFR resulted in a higher clearance of beta 2-microglobulin, but no differences were present in the clearances of albumin, transferrin, IgG, IgA and alpha 2-macroglobulin. This is consistent with the two pore theory for transcapillary transport with a small pore size of less than 40 A. The contribution of osmotic induced convection to the total transport of beta 2-microglobulin was small (6% during 1.36% glucose, 16% during 3.86% glucose), suggesting that macromolecules are mainly transported by diffusion or hydrostatic convection. The peritoneal restriction coefficient was 2.37 +/- 0.04, indicating restricted diffusion for macromolecules. In contrast, the restriction coefficient for low-molecular weight solutes was 1.24 +/- 0.03, in accordance with a process of mainly unrestricted diffusion for solutes smaller than 16 A. Higher values of protein clearances were found during the first hour of dialysis compared with the subsequent hours.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)