Coronavirus Pandemic Leads To Shortage Of Materials Needed For Kidney Dialysis

reported physicians say there is a shortage of materials needed for kidney dialysis as a significant number of patients with COVID-19 experience kidney failure. The Times said the “surge in Covid-19 patients with kidney failure...is leading to shortages of machines, supplies and staff required for emergency dialysis.” ProPublica (4/19, Pearson, Kaplan, Campbell) reports research suggests that 14 percent to 30 percent of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs experience acute kidney injury, which “has taxed the supply of materials like fluids, cartridges and other machine components that are used to facilitate dialysis treatments that filter toxins out of sick patients’ bloodstreams continuously for 24 hours, called continuous renal replacement therapy, or CRRT.”