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Nocturnal Home Hemodialysis
Nocturnal Home Hemodialysis
Dialysis is a procedure to clean the blood that individuals with decreased kidney function must undergo multiple times each week. During nocturnal home hemodialysis, a patient undergoes dialysis at home in their own bed while they sleep. Nocturnal home hemodialysis is performed at least 3 times per week for 6-9 hours. There are many benefits of nocturnal home hemodialysis. Patients have more control over their treatment; they can choose how often they receive treatment and how long treatments last. Since patients are not going to a dialysis center multiple days each week, they can live more fulfilling and normal lives during the day. In addition, nocturnal home hemodialysis patients have more energy and live longer than traditional dialysis patients.
The Clinical Problem:
The Clinical Problem:
Venous Needle Dislodgement
Venous Needle Dislodgement
Venous needle dislodgement occurs when the venous return needle, which pumps cleaned blood back into a patient's body, becomes dislodged from a patient's blood vessel. The video (below) shows a lab simulation of venous needle dislodgement. As you can see from the video, there is already a significant pool of blood forming after just 15 seconds of needle dislodgement. In 5-7 minutes, a patient can lose 50% of their blood. This is why it is crucial to detect and stop blood leakage as soon as possible.
bleeding out video.mp4Need Statement:
Need Statement:
Nocturnal home hemodialysis patients need a comfortable, reliable device to monitor the venous return needle site for blood loss and alert the patient in the event of bleeding in order to prevent blood loss caused by venous needle dislodgement.
Current Technology: Redsense
Current Technology: Redsense
Currently, the only FDA approved blood monitor and sensor is Redsense (below). Redsense uses a fiber optic cable to detect blood and alerts when blood is detected. There are two main downsides to this technology. The alarm unit is placed on the bedside, and the fiber optic cable runs from the bedside to the patient, tethering the patient to their machine. This decreases patients’ mobility while sleeping. In addition, users indicated to us that Redsense has many false alarms, which is frustrating and disrupts sleep.
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