How does peritoneal dialysis

It is important to not miss treatments. Travel Usually, your PD supplies can be shipped to your travel destinations, and you can do your exchanges in clean, dry spaces on your trip.

For most of us, pets are family. Bringing dialysis treatments home does not mean you have to find a new home for your animal buddy. Here are some tips for pet lovers to stay safe while doing dialysis at home.

Talk to your doctor about your life and the activities you enjoy. Here are some questions you may want to ask your doctor:. Donate Now. Give Monthly Give In Honor. Peritoneal Dialysis. Content updated on June 3, - Medically reviewed by Frances E. Related Treatment. When you connect your catheter to tubes going in to the cycler, it will: Fill your belly with dialysate Wait for the correct dwell time Drain the used dialysate from your belly into a bag Refill your belly with clean dialysate and begin the process again to do 3—5 exchanges overnight.

To fill your belly with dialysate: You will sit in a chair, with a tube attached to a bag of dialysate that is hanging above you Gravity will pull the dialysate down from the bag, through the tube into your belly To drain the used dialysate, you will attach a tube to your catheter, and let gravity pull the dialysate out of your belly, through the tube and into a bag below you You will refill your belly with clean dialysate and begin the process again.

Your doctor may tell you to do exchanges during the day if: Your body is holding on to too much of the dialysate during the long daytime dwell time You weigh over pounds You need to have more waste removed from your blood than what can be done during your CCPD overnight treatments. Your doctor may tell you to use a minicycler a smaller version of the cycler machine used in CCPD to do some exchanges at night while you sleep if: Your body is holding on to too much of the dialysate during the long nighttime dwell time You weigh over pounds You need to have more waste removed from your blood than what can be done during your CAPD daytime treatments.

Usually, the cycler does 3—5 exchanges overnight, which takes about 9 hours. Your doctor will tell you how many exchanges you should do and how long your dwell times should be. Your dialysis nurse or technician will show you how to set up the cycler machine to give you the right treatment.

It usually takes between —30—40 minutes to drain and refill your belly with dialysate for each exchange. Your doctor will tell you how many exchanges you should do each day and how long your dwell times should be. You will likely do PD in your bedroom. Most people do their PD exchanges at home, but you can do them any place that is clean and dry. You have more freedom to work and be social— thanks to a more flexible schedule. You can even do PD in your sleep. PD is considered to be gentler on your body— including your heart.

You may experience fewer side effect than with other forms of dialysis. Consider home peritoneal dialysis Home PD is closest to natural kidney function. Find out if it may be a good option for you.

Factors to consider with home peritoneal dialysis A peritoneal catheter a soft, flexible tube will be surgically placed in your abdomen.

Typically, PD catheter surgery is a minor operation that takes less than one hour. You will likely be placed under general anesthesia and go home the same day. After your PD catheter is placed, you will need to avoid swimming, bathing, or showering for 2 weeks, or according to your care teams instructions. This is to protect the dressings from the operation during recovery, as they are not waterproof. You may use a washcloth or sponge to clean your body, while ensuring your PD catheter access site remains dry.

Following certain precautions will help you avoid the risk of an infection called peritonitis. Your nurse will give you instructions on how to avoid infection. You will need ample storage space for your supplies. When you start peritoneal dialysis, dialysis solution—water with salt and other additives—flows from a bag through the catheter into your belly. When the bag is empty, you can disconnect your catheter from the bag and cap it so you can move around and do your normal activities.

While the dialysis solution is inside your belly, it soaks up wastes and extra fluid from your body. After a few hours, you drain the used dialysis solution into a drain bag.

You can then dispose of the used dialysis solution, which is now full of wastes and extra fluid, in a toilet or down the drain of a sink or bathtub. Then you start over with a fresh bag of dialysis solution. The process of first draining the used dialysis solution and then replacing it with fresh solution is called an exchange. Most people do four to six exchanges every day, or during the night using a machine that moves the fluid in and out.

The process goes on continuously, so you always have dialysis solution in your belly soaking up wastes and extra fluid from your body. For the best results from peritoneal dialysis, it is important that you perform all of your exchanges as your doctor instructs. Peritoneal dialysis. The two types of peritoneal dialysis are continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis—also called CAPD—and automated peritoneal dialysis—which doctors sometimes call APD or continuous cycler-assisted peritoneal dialysis.

After learning about the types of peritoneal dialysis, you can choose the type that best fits your schedule and lifestyle. If one schedule or type of peritoneal dialysis does not suit you, you can talk with your doctor about trying another type.

If you weigh more than pounds or if your peritoneum filters wastes slowly, you may need a combination of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis and automated peritoneal dialysis. For example, some people use a cycler at night and perform one exchange during the day. Your health care team will help you determine the best schedule for you.

After a short training period, most people can perform both types of peritoneal dialysis on their own. You will work with a dialysis nurse for 1 to 2 weeks to learn how to. People who do automated peritoneal dialysis need to learn how to do manual exchanges so they can get treatment in case of power failure or if they need an exchange during the day in addition to nighttime automated peritoneal dialysis. You can do both continuous ambulatory and automated peritoneal dialysis in any clean, private place, including at.

Before you travel, you can have the manufacturer ship the supplies to your destination in advance. The equipment and supplies you need will depend on the type of peritoneal dialysis you will use. You could need the following equipment and supplies:.

The health care team will provide you with the equipment you need to begin peritoneal dialysis and help you arrange to have supplies such as dialysis solution and surgical masks delivered to your home, usually on a monthly basis.

Before your first treatment, a surgeon places a catheter into your belly. You may need to stay overnight in the hospital; however, most people can go home after the procedure.

You may receive general or local anesthesia. The catheter stays in permanently and will transfer the dialysis solution to and from your belly.

You will learn to care for the skin around the catheter, called the exit site, as part of your dialysis training. The catheter tends to work better when you give the insertion site adequate time to heal. Healing usually takes 10 to 20 days.

Planning your dialysis catheter insertion at least 3 weeks before your first exchange can improve treatment success. The catheter for peritoneal dialysis is made of soft tubing for comfort. The catheter has one or two cuffs made of a polyester material—called Dacron—that anchors the catheter in place.

The end of the tubing inside your belly has many holes to let solution flow freely in and out. Abdominal catheter. A transfer set is tubing that connects the catheter to the bag of dialysis solution. When you first get your catheter, the section of tube that sticks out from your skin will have a secure cap on the end to prevent infection.

A connector under the cap will attach to any type of transfer set. When your dialysis training starts, your dialysis nurse will give you a transfer set and teach you how to. Transfer set. Between exchanges, you can keep your catheter and transfer set hidden inside your clothing.

At the beginning of an exchange, you will remove the disposable cap from the transfer set and connect the set to a tube that branches like the letter Y. One branch of the Y-tube connects to the drain bag, while the other connects to the bag of fresh dialysis solution. During an exchange, you can read, talk, watch television, or sleep. Dialysis solution comes in 1. Solutions contain a sugar called dextrose or a compound called icodextrin and minerals to pull the wastes and extra fluid from your blood into your abdominal cavity—the space in the body that holds organs such as the stomach, intestines, and liver.

Different solutions have different concentrations of dextrose or icodextrin. Your doctor will prescribe a formula that fits your needs. You will need a clean space to store your bags of solution and other supplies. You will also need to warm each bag of solution to body temperature before use.

You can use an electric blanket or let the bag sit in a tub of warm water. Most solution bags come in a protective outer wrapper, and you can warm them in a microwave. Do not microwave a bag of solution after you have removed it from its wrapper. Another name for this approach is continuous cycling peritoneal dialysis, or CCPD.

A person can discuss their options with a healthcare professional to decide which method is best for them. Some people prefer a doctor place the catheter under general anesthesia where a person is asleep and unaware of the procedure. A doctor will usually recommend that a person not eat or drink anything after midnight before getting a peritoneal dialysis catheter.

This is especially true if the person is going under general anesthesia for the catheter placement. They should talk to a healthcare professional about the materials they will need to care for the catheter insertion site. The NIDDK notes that, if possible, a person should plan to have this procedure 3 weeks before the first exchange, and the catheter will work better if it has approximately 10—20 days to heal before the first use.

A person will need to undergo training to perform either type of peritoneal dialysis at home. A dialysis nurse will train a person for 1—2 weeks. They will learn how to prepare the cycler, place the drain tube, and connect the dialysis bags. Even if a person uses APD, they must learn how to perform exchanges without a machine in case a power outage or machine failure occurs.

Infection prevention is very important in peritoneal dialysis, so a person using it must train well in sterile measures. To perform an exchange, a person should wash their hands thoroughly and use a face mask before accessing the dialysis catheter. They should then use a special connector called a transfer set to act as a connection between the catheter and the dialysis bag.

To perform a hand exchange, a person will need to warm the dialysis bag up to body temperature. A person can do this:. They should then hang the bag on a pole and connect it to the transfer tubing to allow the solution to enter their body. If they are using APD, the machine will warm the bag. A person can program the machine to deliver a certain amount of cycles at night.

Both processes involve using the catheter to empty the fluid in the abdomen. Those using APD may have a longer transfer set that empties into a toilet, bathtub, or other container at night. Each is an electrolyte the kidneys filter. Those on dialysis may need to take nutritional supplements to replace those they lack as a result of avoiding high-potassium foods. Peritoneal dialysis removes protein.

As a result, a person may need to consume higher amounts of protein. A person may also require fluid restrictions.