Dialysis is a main substitutive therapy for patients with Renal Failure. It
includes two types: Peritoneal dialysis and hemodialysis. Compared with
hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis has the above advantages and
disadvantages.
First, advantages
Peritoneal dialysis just brings slight influence to cardiovascular system so
it does not cause much burden to the patients’ heart. Therefore, it can decline
the risk of serious high blood pressure and heart failure.
1. Peritoneal dialysis has a better effect in protecting the remained renal
function so it can delay the occurrence of oliguria and anuria.
2. Peritoneal dialysis does not need vascular access, which can provide a
better therapy for the patients with cardiovascular diseases.
3. Peritoneal dialysis does not need anticoagulant so it does not cause
bleeding such as fundus hemorrhage.
4. The operation of peritoneal dialysis is early. The patients just need to
infuse dislysate into abdominal cavity and then drain the dislysate out of body
after the dialysis finishes. In addition, it also does not need dialysis machine
like hemodialysis. Therefore, the patients can operate the whole dialysis
process by themselves at home.
Second, disadvantages
1. The patients on peritoneal dialysis can lose about 1.2~3.4 grams amino
acid and 5~15 grams protein in dislysate. Therefore, it is very likely to cause
malnutrition to patients.
2. Usually, some patients receive peritoneal dialysis at home. Sometimes,
without the standard guidance of doctors, it can cause microbe invade into body
easily thus causing peritonitis and wound infection.
3. It can induce hernia and edema in napes and pudendum and so on.
Peritoneal is suitable for most of patients with Chronic Renal Failure,
especially the patients who have Diabetes, serious high blood pressure and
cardiovascular diseases as well as elder people. However, if the patients have
abdominal operations, abdominal infection, serious skin disease on napes, asthma
and serious emphysema and so on.
As peritoneal dialysis have both advantages and disadvantages compared with
hemodialysis, the patients should chose proper dialysis based on their own
disease condition under their doctors’ guidance.