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Deferiprone (L1) has been recommended as an effective oral chelation therapy for patients with ß-thalassemia major (TM). From 1999 to 2004, 114 patients with TM from five treatment centers were enrolled in this program: iron (Fe) was chelated with L1 in 57 patients, deferoxamine (DFO) in 26, and combined L1/DFO therapy in 31. We found that serum ferritin (SF) was significantly lower in nine patients receiving L1 for more than 5 years ( p = 0.04), 22 patients receiving L1 for 1–2 years ( p [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Combined peritoneal dialysis (PD) and hemodialysis (HD) therapy (combined therapy) has numerous clinical benefits and should be emphasized for PD patients encountering technique failure.Methods: This 12-year nationwide retrospective study was conducted to compare long-term outcomes (including admission and mortality risks) between combined therapy patients (combined group) and patients directly transferred from PD to HD (transfer group).Results: All 12,407 incidental PD patients from 2000 to 2010 were enrolled and followed up until the end of 2011. A total of 688 patients in the combined group and 688 patients in the transfer group were selected after 1:1 frequency matching based on age, sex, and PD duration. The overall admission and mortality risks of the two groups were comparable in a Cox proportional hazards model (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] = 1.06 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.95-1.19] and 1.02 [95% CI = 0.80-1.30]), respectively). Compared with the transfer group, combined group patients with recent peritonitis or frequent hemodialysis (four HD sessions per month) had significantly higher risk of admission while combined group patients without peritonitis had significantly lower risk. The number of incidents in the combined group increased over time. On average, patients stayed on combined therapy for 2 years.Conclusions: Combined therapy (two HD sessions per month) is not redundant but a rational and cost-effective treatment, particularly for patients without recent peritonitis. Dialysis staff should be familiar with the advantages and disadvantages of combined therapy and consider it an essential part of integrated dialysis care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]