Modality choice in the treatment of acute renal failure (ARF) should be based on the match between individual patient needs and the characteristics of available therapies. Considerations include access, risk of bleeding, hemodynamic instability, and ability to remove excess volume. We prospectively studied 547 consecutive treatments for ARF in 110 patients to determine the performance features of modalities based on single-vessel venous access: hemodialysis (HD) and venovenous hemofiltration (VVH). All treatments were performed in an 18-month period at a single center. Patients' ages ranged from 16 to 84 years; 26 were trauma cases; 69 patients expired during their hospitalization. Mean number of treatments per patient was 4.97. Mean treatment duration was 197 min. Heparin was used unless active bleeding was present or felt to be a high risk; mean dose required was 2628 units. Pressor therapy was in progress prior to initiation of 260 (48%) of treatments. RESULTS pretreatment and posttreatment mean systolic and diastolic BP were unchanged for the group. Forty-three (7.9%) treatments were terminated prematurely; of these only 27 (4.9%) were due to hypotension. No patient developed clinically apparent bleeding during any treatment. Contemporary equipment and techniques allow for provision of high-quality intermittent therapy for ARF, with excellent hemodynamic stability. Shorter, single-vein access treatments are advantageous for severely ill or injured patients who often undergo invasive monitoring and multiple studies or procedures.