Acute Rise of Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids During Hemodialysis Treatment

Objective: Hemodialysis patients have an extremely high rate of cardiac arrhythmia-induced sudden cardiac death, although the risk during the hemodialysis procedure is relatively low. A higher blood content of long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) is believed to reduce the risk of sudden cardiac death. We performed this study to measure the effect of a single-standard hemodialysis treatment on plasma and erythrocyte omega-3 PUFA levels in chronic hemodialysis patients.

Design: This was a prospective, observational study.

Setting: The study was performed in one outpatient hemodialysis unit.

Patients: Study subjects were all chronic, stable hemodialysis patients.

Interventions: There were no interventions.

Main Outcome Measures: Plasma and erythrocyte fatty-acid levels were measured before and immediately after a hemodialysis session.

Results: Plasma levels of long-chain PUFAs, including the omega-3 fatty acids of interest, all rose, whereas those of shorter-chain or more saturated fatty acids either remained unchanged or fell. A similar trend was seen in erythrocytes, though the results did not reach statistical significance.

Conclusions: The hemodialysis procedure induces acute increases of long-chain omega-3 PUFAs in the blood. This effect may help explain why malignant cardiac arrhythmias occur relatively infrequently during hemodialysis.