Dialysis Support Group

Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD) or just (PD).

I don't want to scare you but you need as much information, good and bad, to make decisions in your new life as a kidney dialysis patient.

I had an awful experience on PD which is not to say you will. Everyone is different. I've heard of others who did just fine.
You know the advantage: freedom, continuous dialysis, etc. I exchanged bags in the desert, on top of parking structures, in my car while working, in my office at noon time and of course at home.
The problem came up as I slowly got sicker over the 15 month period of CAPD. My dialysis nurse and doctor just kept increasing my exchanges and larger amount of fluid going in.
Instead of recognizing that it just wasn't doing a complete job and switching over to hemodialysis they kept me on it. I primarily blame my CAPD nurse whose job depending on getting and keeping patients in his program.

I ended up so sick I could not work, period. I was on my death bed when they told the transplant surgeon to put me on the top of the list.
Back then I had waited 15 months which was a little longer than usual so it was not a big effort in my opinion.

Anyway if you are unable to work full time after being on it awhile, and continue to feel worse and worse consider switching.

Here is what you should feel. You will be very sick when you start as they will not start you on any dialysis until your body is really bad. Probably not working. You'll feel much better in comparison but you'll not be normal. But OK.
Then you should stay OK.
If, over a period of months, things get worse then reconsider.

But for a start its a great way to go.

One secret I learned was the use of sterile saline (salty) water to clean all wounds and around where the tube enters the abdomen. Clean all of them with each exchange. For some reason the saline works much better than alcohol.

Use a device to switch the tube from the old bag to the new. It's much faster and cleaner than doing the switch by hand.

DO NOT HESITATE to go to the emergency room if your used solution is the slightest bit cloudy. YOU WILL GET abdomonical infections. Peritoneiumitis if I spelled it right. Everyone gets them. It DOES NOT go away by itself. You can die.

By getting IMMEDITE diagonis you can cure it quickly and avoid a LOT of pain.

Always carry the instructions on what the EMERGENCT ROOM doctors should do when you walk it. It's call the Protocol. Few medical people know anything about dialysis so they will very happy that you can show them what to do. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR HEALTH. You cannot assume that any medical personnel know how to treat your unique problems. Be a boy/girl scout. Be prepared.

If it seems right for you go for it. There is only one way to find out and that's to do it. I hope that things will go great for and and it's like that the will.

Please don't be scared of what I've said. It's just my experience. If in time you see yourself going my direction don't hesitate to consider some form of hemodialysis.

And don't be afraid of the needles if you go to hemodialysis. It's OK.
Posted on 09/30/07, 11:09 am