CLINICAL AND PARACLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF END-STAGE RENAL DISEASE PATIENTS INITIATING HEMODIALYSIS VIA TEMPORARY VASCULAR ACCESS

Objective: To describe the clinical and paraclinical characteristics of patients with end-stage renal disease initiating hemodialysis via temporary vascular access and to evaluate several characteristics and complications related to temporary vascular access in this population. Subjects and Methods: A retrospective descriptive cohort study was conducted on 43 patients with end-stage renal disease who underwent temporary catheter placement for emergency hemodialysis at Saint Paul General Hospital from August 2025 to March 2026. Results: The mean age was 69,6 ± 13,2 years. Common clinical manifestations included edema (65,1%), hypertension (58,1%), dyspnea (51,2%). The mean hemoglobin level was 84.8 ± 17.1 g/L. The majority of patients exhibited varying degrees of anemia: mild (25,6%), moderate (65,1%), and severe (7,0%). Indications for emergency hemodialysis included uremic syndrome (55,8%), acute pulmonary edema/fluid overload (34,9%), metabolic acidosis (14,0%), oliguria/anuria (9,3%), and hyperkalemia (2,3%). The most commonly used temporary vascular access site was the right femoral vein (81,4%). The median duration of catheter use was 14 days. The median number of dialysis sessions per catheter was 6, with a median total dialysis duration of 20 hours. Complications associated with temporary vascular access included infection (12,1/1000 catheter-days), dysfunction (8,4/1000 catheter-days), and bleeding (1,2/1000 catheter-days). Conclusion: Patients with end-stage renal disease initiating hemodialysis via temporary vascular access were predominantly catheterized through the right femoral vein. The main indications for emergency hemodialysis were uremic syndrome and acute pulmonary edema/fluid overload. The most common complications of temporary vascular access were infection and catheter dysfunction.