Peritoneal dialysis is a type of home dialysis that lets you continue your everyday activities. You can do your dialysis at home, on vacation, at work, or wherever you happen to be. With peritoneal dialysis, you have more control over when and where you perform your treatments.
During peritoneal dialysis treatments, your blood is filtered internally using a special solution called dialysate. You place dialysate in your peritoneal cavity, where it absorbs toxins, then you simply drain the dialysate out.
Peritoneal dialysis does not use needles. If needles are scary for you, then you should consider this type of dialysis. Peritoneal is often referred to as “PD.” Our PD patients love this therapy because they feel better and can adjust their therapy around their eating habits.
To receive peritoneal dialysis, you must be eligible for abdominal surgery. A tube, or catheter, will be surgically placed in your abdomen. This tube transports the dialysate in and out of your peritoneal cavity. If you’re interested in peritoneal dialysis, you will be referred to one of our experienced surgeons who will evaluate you for a PD catheter.
You will not need to visit a dialysis center to receive treatment. Peritoneal dialysis is a therapy that allows you to perform dialysis every day, which is more like how your kidneys used to function. Your kidney doctor will work with our nurses to create a prescription of solutions tailored to your lifestyle.
Peritoneal dialysis allows you to have more control over your therapy, and you become an important part of the team. You will manually fill and drain fluids multiple times a day, or a machine will deliver and drain fluid for you at night, depending on your treatment method.
There are two types of peritoneal dialysis. You can choose which one is best for you based on your lifestyle and what you are most comfortable doing.
You can receive treatment while you go to work or school with CAPD. This method of peritoneal dialysis does not utilize a machine to deliver dialysate. It is a manual process where you attach a bag of dialysate to your catheter and infuse it into your belly using gravity. After 30 or 40 minutes, you drain the toxins into a bag and discard down the drain.
You repeat this process three to five times each day based on your prescription. These treatments let you continue your normal activities, since you are not connected to a machine and you can take bags of solution with you for your exchanges.
If you would rather receive your exchanges at night while you sleep, CCPD is the perfect therapy for you. This type of dialysis is also called Automated Peritoneal Dialysis, or APD.
With this method, a small, portable machine called a cycler sits on your bedside table and automatically infuses and drains your dialysate while you sleep. You might still need to perform a manual exchange during the day to help remove excess toxins. Many patients love the freedom of having dialysis performed while they sleep.
Explore these resources from Home Dialysis Central and My Life, My Choice to help you determine what type of home dialysis fits you.
We offer both CAPD and CCPD options for patients interested in and eligible for peritoneal dialysis. You will perform treatments at home and only need to see your kidney doctors and nurses once or twice a month. We make sure you are confident and comfortable performing each step, and we are always here to address your concerns.
Have questions about peritoneal dialysis? Reach out for more information using our online contact form. To schedule an appointment, please call one of our dialysis centers.
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