Ethambutol Is Cleared by a Contemporary High-Flux Hemodialyzer, and Drug Monitoring Ensures Safety and Therapeutic Effect.
Chew R., Jongbloed S., Jegatheesan D., Healy H., Ta K., Ungerer J., McWhinney B., Donovan P., Woods ML.
It is uncertain, given the lack of recent data and the inconclusive nature of previous data, whether ethambutol is cleared by hemodialysis using contemporary dialyzers. We measured serum ethambutol concentrations before, during, and 1 h after hemodialysis in a 75-year-old Caucasian man receiving ethambutol for disseminated Bacille Calmette-Guérin infection. There was a mean 41% decrease in serum ethambutol concentration during dialysis, confirming the hemodialyzability of ethambutol and the utility of drug monitoring in ensuring safety.