Does poly-N-acetyl glucosamine patch use reduce arteriovenous fistula and graft failure rates in hemodialysis patients with end-stage renal disease?

BACKGROUND

Maintenance of functional vascular access is crucial for the delivery of hemodialysis. The SyvekPatch is a topical marine microalgal poly-N-acetyl glucosamine hemostat approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in the local management of bleeding wounds, such as vascular site, percutaneous catheters or tubes, and surgical debridement.

METHODS

The Preservation of Vascular Access Study was designed to investigate the effectiveness of patch use in reducing failure rates of arteriovenous fistulas or grafts. Data from medical records of patients who received hemodialysis from January 2001 to December 2005 at local ambulatory outpatient hemodialysis units in Charleston, South Carolina were analyzed. To explore whether greater use of the poly-N-acetyl glucosamine patch resulted in more favorable outcomes, patients were categorized into no patch use (n = 183) or 2 groups involving patch use, <70% of hemodialysis sessions (n = 88) or >or=70% of hemodialysis sessions (n = 64). The outcome measure was failure of access site estimated using Poisson regression models.

RESULTS

Three hundred thirty-five patients (54% women) with 178 fistulas (44%) and 227 grafts (56%) were included. The study population was predominantly African American (84%), with a median age of 58 years. The adjusted relative rate of access failure involving patch use in <70% of hemodialysis sessions versus no patch use was 0.84 (95% CI, 0.37-1.94), and for patch use in >or=70% of hemodialysis sessions versus no patch use was 0.40 (95% CI, 0.16-1.02; trend P = 0.045).

CONCLUSIONS

The Preservation of Vascular Access Study results are consistent with improved access survival with frequent patch use. The application of patch in this population is a simple, well-accepted intervention and warrants further investigation.