Ultrasound evaluation of arteriovenous fistula for hemodialysis

The article presents a pictorial literature review on ultrasound evaluation of arteriovenous fistula for hemodialysis in patients with end-stage renal failure. Native arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is considered the “gold standard” of vascular access. Nowadays ultrasound is the first-line imaging modality of management of patients receiving hemodialysis treatment at all stages. The article highlights the role of ultrasound in preoperative assessment when planning the AVF creation, assessing the maturation of vascular access, as well as early detection of its dysfunction. The main complications of arteriovenous fistulas are presented, and examples of their diagnosis using the ultrasound are given.