The 28‐day survival rates of two cytokine‐adsorbing hemofilters for continuous renal replacement therapy: a single‐center retrospective comparative study

AIM: Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) with a cytokine‐adsorbing hemofilter (CAH) is effective in the treatment of sepsis. Two filter types, namely polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and surface‐treated AN69 (AN69ST) hemofilters, have been successfully used for CRRT, but no direct comparisons have been published to date. This study compared the efficacy, as measured by 28‐day survival rates, of PMMA and AN69ST hemofilters in patients receiving CAH‐CRRT. METHODS: This retrospective observational study reviewed the medical records of 142 patients who received CAH‐CRRT between November 2013 and February 2015. RESULTS: The 28‐day survival rates were higher in the AN69ST group than in the PMMA group for patients with or without sepsis (all patients, 79.4% versus 54.1%; patients with sepsis, 77.3% versus 50.0%; patients without sepsis, 83.3% versus 57.5%; P < 0.05). No significant differences were observed regarding 28‐day survival rates of patients with or without sepsis (AN69ST, 77.3% versus 83.3%; P = 0.51; PMMA, 50.0% versus 57.5%; P = 0.61) using the same hemofilter. CONCLUSION: The AN69ST hemofilter could be more effective than PMMA hemofilters for improving the survival outcomes of patients with or without sepsis.