Kt/V (pronounced kay tee over vee) is a number used to quantify hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis treatment adequacy (to measure how effective a haemodialysis treatment is). It is based on tests of blood urea, by measuring the levels before and after treatment, to show how much has been removed.
The minimum target for Kt/V is 1.2. This applies to patient who receive dialysis three times each week. A slightly lower value may be OK if you still have some function from your own kidneys.
Causes of low Kt/V include:
- Dialysis treatment too short (less than four hours)
- Problems with blood flow or recirculation at vascular access
- Artificial kidney (dialyzer) too small
How to improve Kt/V and/or dialysis dose – possibilities include
- Longer dialysis
- Better access (fistula or line)
- A larger artificial kidney may help if blood flow is good
- More frequent dialysis (e.g. 4 times per week instead of 3)