Advances in Peritoneal Dialysis, Vol.

30, 2014

Ruchi Kumra,1,2 Joanne M. Bargman1,3

Diuretics are commonly prescribed to manage various conditions in the general population. They can
continue to play a role in dialysis patients to manage
extracellular fluid volume and hypertension and to
reduce the tendency to hyperkalemia. Nevertheless,
diuretics are often stopped when patients commence
dialysis. Several studies have shown that preserved
residual renal function in dialysis patients is associated with improved patient survival. Although the association between diuretic use and preserved residual
renal function is still controversial, the numerous
clinical benefits offered by diuretics render those
agents valuable in dialysis patients with urine output.
Loop diuretics are generally the agents of choice
in end-stage renal disease. They need to be used at
higher doses because of pharmacokinetic changes
in the context of diminishing renal clearance. Other
classes of diuretics can still be used in end-stage
renal disease, but usually in conjunction with loop
diuretics or for benefits independent of diuresis.
Complications can occur with the use of diuretics,
but are avoidable with appropriate use. Dose-related
ototoxicity, especially with concomitant use of other
ototoxic medications, can occur. Hyperkalemia is
possible with the use of potassium-sparing diuretics,
but studies suggest that these agents can be safely
administered with close monitoring.
Key words
Diuretics, hemodialysis, pharmacology, adverse
events, residual kidney function
Introduction
Diuretics are commonly prescribed in the general
population to manage various conditions such as hypertension, edema, and congestive heart failure (1).
Although dialysis patients have similar conditions, the
From: 1Division of Nephrology and 2Department of
Pharmacy, University Health Network, and 3University of
Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

A Review of Diuretic Use

in Dialysis Patients
use of diuretics declines sharply in these individuals
after they have been on dialysis for 2 years. Furthermore,
the prescribing practices of clinicians appear to vary
dramatically across dialysis facilities, with 0% 83.9%
of dialysis patients being on diuretics (2). Some studies
have shown an association between diuretic use and better preserved residual renal function (RRF) in dialysis
patients (2), but that finding is still controversial.
In this review, we explore the mechanism of action of diuretics and their utility in patients with a
diminished glomerular filtration rate (GFR), and we
revisit the importance of RRF. We also discuss the
clinical benefits and risks of diuretics, specifically
in the peritoneal dialysis (PD) and hemodialysis
(HD) populations.
Discussion
Mechanism of action of diuretics
Loop diuretics block the Na+K+2Cl co-transporter.
They inhibit sodium and chloride reabsorption in the
thick ascending limb of the loop of Henle and cause
increased secretion of water, potassium, sodium, and
chloride. Furosemide, bumetanide, and ethacrynic
acid are examples of this class of diuretics.
Loop diuretics are the drug of choice in patients
with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) because they
are thought to be effective to some degree at low
GFR (3). However, a reduction in GFR results in less
tubular transport of the diuretic to the lumen of the
nephron (the site of action), which limits the maximum achievable diuretic effect. In fact, in patients
with a GFR below 15mL/min, secretion of the loop
diuretic into tubular fluid is only 10% 20% of that
seen in individuals with normal renal function (4).
To overcome that difference, a sufficiently high dose
(that is, 160 200mg intravenous furosemide) might
be needed to attain effective diuresis or maximal natriuresis (approaching 20% of the filtered Na+ load)
(4,5). In patients with a GFR below 10mL/min and
a daily urine volume below 100mL, the effect of
diuretics might be minimal (6).

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Thiazide diuretics block the Na+Cl co-transporter in the distal tubule. Hydrochlorothiazide,
metolazone, indapamide, and chlorthalidone belong
to this class of diuretics. As in the case of loop diuretics, decreased delivery of thiazide diuretics to
the nephron lumen requires that sufficiently high
doses be given in the context of diminishing GFR.
Using hydrochlorothiazide as an example, 50
100mg daily might have to be prescribed in mildto-moderate renal failure and 100 200mg daily in
severe renal failure (5). Still, even at those high
doses, hydrochlorothiazide, because of its low potency and limited natriuresis, is not typically effective in severe renal failure (4). To achieve effective
diuresis with a thiazide diuretic in patients with a
GFR below 30mL/min, the more common approach
is to give it in combination with a loop diuretic (7,8).
The combination generates additive natriuresis in
the setting of loop diuretic resistance and can allow
for lower doses of the latter drug to be administered.
Metolazone has a long half-life and is compartmentalized in red blood cells. For those reasons, it can
maintain diuresis over a considerable period of time,
rendering it the thiazide of choice as an adjunct to
a loop diuretic in ESRD (4). Finally, because thiazide
diuretics lower peripheral vascular resistance independent of natriuresis, some clinicians use them for
their antihypertensive effects in ESRD, although
that use is not routinely recommended (9).
Potassium-sparing diuretics act in the distal renal
tubule. Spironolactone, amiloride, and triamterene are
examples of this drug class. Spironolactone competes
with aldosterone for receptor sites and increases sodium, chloride, and water excretion while conserving
potassium. Amiloride and triamterene block epithelial
sodium channels that inhibit sodium reabsorption,
decrease the function of the NaK pump, and lead
to potassium retention. True to their name, they can
cause hyperkalemia (especially in patients with diabetes) and should be used with caution (7).
Other less commonly used classes of diuretics are
osmotic diuretics (mannitol) and carbonic anhydrase
inhibitors (acetazolamide).
Importance of RRF
The 2006 clinical practice guidelines for PD adequacy
from the National Kidney Foundations Kidney
Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative emphasize the
importance of monitoring and preserving residual

Diuretic Use in Dialysis

kidney function (10). Similarly, the clinical practice
guidelines for HD adequacy state that one should
strive to preserve residual kidney function in HD
patients (11). Both guidelines are supplemented with
good evidence and are presented as gradeA recommendations. They are supported by the reanalysis
of the CANUSA PD study, which showed that, for
each additional 250 mL of urine excreted per day,
the relative risk for death declined by 36% (12). In
the HD population, the CHOICE study showed that
RRF (defined as 250mL of urine output daily) was
associated with better survival and quality of life, less
inflammation, and a significantly lower erythropoietin requirement (13).
Unfortunately, longitudinal studies have shown
that RRF declines progressively with time on dialysis (6), and therefore any intervention that can
potentially slow RRF decline in dialysis patients is
considered advantageous.
Clinical benefits of diuretics in dialysis patients
It had been postulated that loop diuretics might potentially play a role in slowing the observed decline
in RRF. Medcalf et al. showed that patients newly
started on continuous ambulatory PD, with RRF at
baseline, maintained their urine volume over 1 year
when given an oral daily dose of 250mg furosemide
(6). At the 12-month mark, a significant mean difference of 340mL in daily urine volume was observed
that was associated with a significant difference in
sodium excretion (which the authors postulated to be
the mechanism behind the greater urine volume). In
the HD population, observational studies have suggested the same outcome (14). It is important to note
that Medcalf et al. showed that, although furosemide
increased urine volume, it had no effect on preserving
or slowing the decline in small-solute clearance (6).
The Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns
Study postulated that the association between lower
mortality and diuretic use observed in their analysis
is one more example of the known survival benefit
conferred by RRF (2); however, there are other potential explanations. One confounding explanation
for the finding is that RRF might itself be associated
with lower mortality and that patient selection bias
might be operating (in that diuretics are usually prescribed to patients who have RRF). However, there
are mechanisms whereby diuretics might plausibly
affect patient survival.

Kumra and Bargman

117

Patients on dialysis oftentimes have diets that restrict

sodium, potassium, phosphorus, and fluid intake.
Diuretic use might allow patients to liberalize their
diet and fluid intake, which could potentially be more
palatable for them and might increase compliance
with other therapies. In PD patients specifically, the
use of diuretics might perhaps allow for less frequent
and less hypertonic dextrose exchanges, which could
be convenient for the patient and could theoretically
diminish systemic glucose loading and perhaps protect the peritoneal membrane from damaging high
glucose concentrations. As well, PD patients with
higher RRF have been observed to have a lower risk
of peritonitis (15).

mass in moderate-to-severe heart failure in dialysis

patients (15). However, these patients might also be
at particularly high risk for developing hyperkalemia
while on aldosterone antagonists; rates are reported
to be as high as 10%, particularly at higher doses
(16). The risk is theoretically intensified with the
concomitant use of medications such as angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensinII
receptor blockers, trimethoprim, antifungals, and
nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which can
also cause hyperkalemia (4,5,17).
Baker et al. reviewed the literature on the safe
use of mineralocorticoid antagonists in patients with
ESRD undergoing HD and suggested that those agents
could be safely used in HD patients because the incidence of severe hyperkalemia remained low (16). It
is noteworthy, though, that most studies lacked a true
control arm and had small patient populations and relatively short follow-up periods. The doses used in the
reviewed studies varied from spironolactone 12.5mg 3
times weekly to 300mg daily. Taheri et al. performed
a prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy
of spironolactone 25mg every other day in 18 continuous ambulatory PD patients with New York Heart
Association classIII or IV heart failure (18). Those
authors showed that potassium levels rose in both
groups, with no statistically significant difference,
and only 1 patient in the treatment group developed
hyperkalemia (defined as >5.7mmol/L potassium). It
is noteworthy that patients on angiotensin-converting
enzyme inhibitors and angiotensinII receptor blockers
were not excluded from the studies. In general, aldosterone antagonists can be used in ESRD patients for
several cardiac benefits (although those benefits have
not been extrapolated to the dialysis population), but
K+ levels should be monitored frequently, especially
with concomitant use of other medications that could
exacerbate hyperkalemia.

Side effects and complications of diuretics

loop diuretics and ototoxicity

electrolyte balance and volume control

The advantage conferred by preserved RRF might be

related to the urine volume excreted and maintenance
of euvolemic status (12). Based on the mechanism of
action of loop diuretics, the beneficial effects observed
in dialysis patients could be explained by the removal
of sodium and water. That removal plays a crucial
role in preventing volume overload and its sequelae
(such as left ventricular hypertrophy, congestive heart
failure, and uncontrolled hypertension). Further, RRF
allows for increased clearance of middle molecules,
lower circulating levels of inflammatory markers,
reduced blood pressure, improved hemoglobin status and phosphorus control, reduced left ventricular
hypertrophy, and fewer comorbid conditionsall
potentially leading to improved patient survival (15).
In HD patients, it is possible that diuretic use helps
to preserve RRF and to improve survival by reducing
interdialytic fluid accumulation and thus minimizing
hypotensive episodes during dialysis, which have
been associated with greater morbidity and mortality
(2). Hyperkalemia has also been less often observed
in patients on diuretics (2).
impact on quality of life and nutrition

aldosterone antagonists and hyperkalemia

Dialysis patients have an increased extracellular

fluid volume and high aldosterone levels, which can
contribute to cardiovascular risk. The potassiumsparing diuretics spironolactone and eplerenone are
also known as aldosterone antagonists. They can
improve cardiac function and reduce left ventricular

Loop diuretics can cause ototoxicity, usually in patients receiving high intravenous doses while taking
other other ototoxic medications, particularly aminoglycoside antibiotics (5). The ototoxicity is usually
transient and reversible. Limited data suggest that
the frequency of ototoxicity seems to be higher with
furosemide than with bumetanide and even higher
with ethacrynic acid (4). For that reason, ethacrynic

118
acid is reserved mainly for patients with an allergy to
furosemide (5). Several older studies have explored
furosemide ototoxicity, one of which found that,
among patients with severe renal failure, infusion of
furosemide at a constant rate of 25 mg/min caused
noticeable hearing loss in two thirds of patients. When
given at a rate of 15mg/min, only minor hearing loss
was reported. The authors concluded that furosemide
should be given at a rate of less than 4mg/min to avoid
hearing loss (19). Rastogi et al. found no hearing loss
among renal patients receiving daily oral doses of
furosemide up to 2g (20), although Rifkin et al. and
Gallagher et al. reported permanent hearing loss from
smaller oral doses (21,22).
Although ESRD patients require higher doses
of furosemide to attain adequate diuretic effect, it
is important to note that a ceiling effect has been
observed in loop diuretics for a dose at which the
fractional percentage of sodium excretion (the diuretic
effect) plateaus for any incremental increase in the
dose. Continuing to increase the dose of a diuretic
therefore results in no additional diuretic effect, but
theoretically exposes the patient to more side effects.
The usual maximum intravenous dose of furosemide is
80 160mg in moderate renal insufficiency and 160
200mg in severe renal insufficiency (the equivalent
oral dose is double) (5).
Summary
Diuretics are often underutilized in dialysis patients
or even stopped once patients are initiated on dialysis.
Several studies have suggested that, in ESRD patients
who continue to have RRF, many benefits accrue from
continuation of diuretics. Loop diuretics are the drugs
of choice, and they might need to be used at higher
doses to attain optimal diuresis. Some side effects can
occur, but those effects can be avoided and managed
with close patient monitoring.
Disclosures
The authors have no financial conflicts of interest
to disclose.
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Corresponding author:
Joanne M. Bargman, md, Toronto General Hospital,
200Elizabeth Street, Toronto, Ontario M5G2C4
Canada.
E-mail:
joanne.bargman@uhn.ca