Therapeutic effect of L-carnitine in patients receiving hemodialysis

Objective To observe the therapeutic effect of L-carnitine in patients receiving hemodialysis. Methods Clinical data about 14 patients who underwent L-carnitine hemodialysis in our hospital from December 2010 to December 2011 were retrospectively analyzed. Results No significant change of hemoglobin and albumin occurred in the 14 patients 12 months after L-carnitine hemodialysis（P＞0.05）.The dose of recombinant human erythropoietin（EPO） was reduced（P＜0.05）.The Apo-A1 was significantly lower after treatment than before treatment（P＜0.05） while no significant difference was found in the other indexes before and after treatment（P＞0.05）. Conclusion L-carnitine can reduce the need of EPO in patients receiving hemodialysis and has no effect on albumin and lipid metabolism.