SZC and SPS, which is Better on Hyperkalemia in Dialysis Patients: A Retrospective Study

Abstract Purpose Patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) lose the capacity of renal potassium excretion and often suffer from persistent hyperkalemia, especially for those requiring maintenance hemodialysis (HD). Sodium zirconium cyclosilicate (SZC) is the most recently approved K + binding agent in China. It is reported SZC is an effective and well-tolerated treatment for pre-dialysis hyperkalemia in patients with ESRD undergoing adequate hemodialysis. We thus conducted a retrospective study to compare the therapeutic efficiency of SZC and sodium polystyrene sulfonate (SPS, another classic K + binding agent) on hyperkalemia in HD patients. Methods: 38 patients with persistent pre-dialysis hyperkalemia were included, and 18 patients were treated by SZC while 20 patients were treated by SPS. The changes of serum potassium level were followed up for 7 months. Results: We observed that the potassium reducing capacity of SZC and SPS were comparable at the first 3 months, but SZC displayed better long-term therapeutic effect. Conclusion: Our results supported that SZC is a good option for treatment of hard-controlled pre-dialysis hyperkalemia.