Elevation of silicon content in brains of dialysis patients

Trace element abnormalities in patients undergoing hemodialysis for chronic renal failure have been the subject of active research. The neurotoxicity of uremia remains poorly understood. Aluminum has been thought to be a primary factor in dialysis dementia, however, it is not thought to be the sole factor. Utilizing inductively coupled argon plasma emission spectrometry, we measured five major and four trace elements in brains of patients on hemodialysis, patients with chronic renal insufficiency, and patients with normal renal function. We report elevations of brain silicon in patients on hemodialysis but not in patients with renal insufficiency or normal renal function. Silicon should be considered a potential uremic neurotoxin and possibly, in association with aluminum, a contributing factor to dialysis dementia.