DaVita moves patients to medium cutoff dialyzers. Its chief medical officer explains why
In a Healio Q&A, Dr. Jeffrey Giullian describes DaVita's switch to medium cutoff dialyzers and why he expects middle-molecule clearance to become standard care. Outcome data are still being gathered.
What happened
Nipro's ELISIO-HX, a medium cutoff (MCO) dialyzer, received FDA 510(k) clearance in July 2026. Nipro announced US availability in early August. (Healio's headline calls it an approval; the regulatory step was a 510(k) clearance.) Within days, DaVita said it would expand access quickly.
In a Healio Q&A published September 24, 2026, DaVita's chief medical officer, Dr. Jeffrey Giullian, says the switch is already underway. DaVita has begun moving patients from high-flux to MCO dialyzers and plans to continue through the fall.
Who's involved
Nipro makes the dialyzer; DaVita is the provider buying and deploying it. As Healio relays Nipro's description, the dialyzer has a controlled pore structure that removes larger middle molecules while holding on to albumin. Because it fits existing hemodialysis machines, no new equipment is needed. Dr. Giullian also sits on the editorial advisory board of Healio | Nephrology News & Issues.
What it means
Dr. Giullian's case rests on simplicity. Nothing changes in the workflow, he says; staff just swap the dialyzer. He reports that, anecdotally, patients feel better quickly and have less intradialytic hypotension. He expects middle-molecule clearance to become the new standard of care, much as high-flux replaced low-flux.
He does not frame this as a contest. He says patients should get either high-volume hemodiafiltration or MCO dialysis, which DaVita calls "expanded HD." There is no one-size-fits-all, he says, and the choice belongs to the physician.
What we don't know yet
How much patients benefit. The interview shares DaVita's early clinical experience rather than trial results, and the patient improvements it describes are early observations. DaVita is now collecting outcome data on anemia, patient-reported outcomes, hospitalization and mortality, and those results will help answer the question. Cost is not discussed.
Industry ties: Dr. Giullian is DaVita's chief medical officer and owns DaVita stock.
The source: Laboy L. Q&A: Recent FDA approval prompts expansion of medium cutoff dialyzers. Healio | Nephrology. September 24, 2026. Read the original
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