Basic Details You Need To Know About Dialysis Procedures.

What is dialysis?

As per the Hiranandani Hospital Powai news, people with kidney failure undergo dialysis treatment. When you have kidney failure, your kidneys aren't filtering your blood as they should. As a result, waste and toxins build up in the bloodstream. Dialysis removes waste products and excess fluid from your blood, performing the role of your kidneys.

Who needs dialysis?

People with kidney failure or end-stage renal disease (ESRD) may need dialysis. Kidney disease can be caused by kidney injuries and other conditions, such as diabetes, lupus, and high blood pressure.

Kidney failure can be a long-term condition or occur suddenly (acutely) after a serious illness or injury. This type of kidney failure can go away as you recover.

There are five stages of kidney disease. With these stages of kidney disease, healthcare providers assume you have end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or kidney failure. At this point, the kidneys perform about 10% to 15% of their normal function. People need a kidney transplant or dialysis to stay alive. Some people go on dialysis while waiting for a transplant.

What are the types of dialysis?

There are two ways to get dialysis to undergo:

• Hemodialysis.

• Peritoneal dialysis.

What is hemodialysis?

In hemodialysis, a machine removes blood from your body, filters it through a dialyzer (artificial kidney), and returns clean blood. This 3-5 hour process can be performed a week thrice in a hospital or dialysis center.

Hemodialysis can also be performed at home. You may need home treatments for fewer hours per session, four to seven times a week. You can choose to have hemodialysis at home while you sleep.

What happens before hemodialysis?

Before you start hemodialysis, you will have a minor surgical procedure to facilitate access to the bloodstream. You may have:

• Arteriovenous fistula (AV fistula): A surgeon connects an artery and a vein in your arm.

• Arteriovenous Graft (AV Graft): When the artery and vein are too short to connect, the surgeon uses a graft (soft hollow tube) to connect the artery and vein.

AV fistulas and grafts expand the connecting artery and vein, facilitating dialysis. If dialysis needs to be done quickly, your doctor can put a catheter (thin tube) into a vein in your neck or chest or insert it into your leg for temporary access. 

Your doctors at the Hiranandani hospital kidney transplant center will teach you how to prevent infection in your fistula or graft. This provider will also show you how to do hemodialysis at home if you choose to do it.

What happens during hemodialysis?

During hemodialysis:

• Draw blood from a needle in your arm. 

• Circulates blood through the dialyzer filter, which carries waste into a dialysis solution. This cleansing fluid contains water, salt, and other additives.

• It returns the filtered blood to your body through another needle in your arm.

Monitor your blood pressure to adjust the speed at which blood enters and leaves your body.

What happens after hemodialysis?

The doctors at Hiranandani Hospital's kidney transplant center say that patients may experience low blood pressure during or immediately after hemodialysis. You may feel sick, dizzy, or faint. Other side effects of hemodialysis include:

• Chest pain or back pain.

• Headache.

• Itchy skin.

• Muscle cramps.

• Restless Legs Syndrome.

What is peritoneal dialysis?

In peritoneal dialysis, small blood vessels in the abdominal wall (peritoneum) filter the blood using a dialysis solution. This solution is a cleaning fluid that contains water, salt, and other additives.

Peritoneal dialysis is performed at home. Two ways can be adopted to perform this treatment:

• Automated Peritoneal Dialysis uses a machine called the Cycler.

• Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD), performed manually.

What happens before peritoneal dialysis?

You will have a minor surgical procedure about three weeks before you start peritoneal dialysis. A surgeon inserts a thin, soft tube (catheter) through your abdomen into the peritoneum. This catheter stays in place permanently. A healthcare provider will teach you how to perform peritoneal dialysis at home and prevent catheter site infections.

What happens during peritoneal dialysis?

During peritoneal dialysis:

• Attach the catheter to a branch of a Y-tube. This tube is connected to a bag containing dialysis solution. The solution flows through the tube and catheter into the abdominal cavity.

• After about 10 minutes, disconnect the tube and catheter when the bag is empty.

• Close the catheter.  Go about your usual activities while the dialysis solution in the abdominal cavity absorbs waste and excess fluid from the body. Remove the cap from the catheter and use the other leg of the Y-shaped tubing to drain the liquid into a clean, empty bag.

You must get through the process up to four times a day. You sleep all night with the solution in your stomach. Some people prefer to have peritoneal dialysis at night. In automated peritoneal dialysis, a cycler machine pumps fluid in and out of your body while you sleep.

What happens after peritoneal dialysis?

Fluid in your abdomen can pass through it feeling bloated or full. It may feel uncomfortable, but the treatment is not painful. Your stomach may protrude more than normal when full of fluid.