Starting Kidney Dialysis

People with end stage kidney failure--defined by the National Kidney Foundation as less than 15 percent kidney functioning--rely on dialysis to mimic healthy kidneys. Dialysis allows bodies with kidney failure to remove waste build-up, balance body chemistry and maintain stable blood pressure. People who undergo dialysis opt for hemodialysis (dialysis performed by a machine that acts as an artificial kidney) or peritoneal dialysis (dialysis in which toxins and salt are removed from the blood internally). Speak with your doctor so you know what dialysis method is best for you.

Starting Hemodialysis

• If you opt for hemodialysis, expect to visit your doctor three times a week for sessions. Before you begin your first hemodialysis session, your doctor will have to perform minor surgery to link an artery and a superficial vein so the dialysis machine has access to your blood. During hemodialysis sessions, blood leaves your body and enters the dialysis machine. The dialysis machine filters the blood of salt, waste and excess water and returns it to your body. This process is generally repeated for four hours in order to ensure complete filtration.

  The main drawback of hemodialysis is that it requires lots of dedicated time. Some patients experience low blood pressure as a result of too much fluid leaving the body. Other patients experience fatigue from both the dialysis and the routine of having to receive hemodialysis so often. If you have a full schedule and/or do not want to spend so much of your week at the hospital, consider peritoneal dialysis to start.

Starting Peritoneal Dialysis

• Peritoneal dialyis comes in two forms: continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and continuous cycling peritoneal dialysis (CCPD). During the CAPD, filtration occurs within the body's peritoneum membrane as you maintain your regular daily schedule. Every four or five hours, you drain the fluid back into a bag and discard. CCPD filters the blood at night with the assistance of a machine. In both forms of peritoneal dialysis, a solution enters the body through a catheter tube. The solution absorbs toxins from the blood and the dirty fluid exits the body.

  Although peritoneal dialysis requires you to care for your own dialysis process, you will have comprehensive training from nurses who will teach you how peritoneal dialysis works. You will also make bi-monthly or monthly visits to your doctor for check-ups.

  The main benefit of peritoneal dialysis is that it allows you to go about your life without having to visit the hospital three times week. On the other hand, since the blood filtering process happens at home, you will need to ensure that you receive proper training and immediately talk to your nurse or doctor if you have any issues or concerns. Peritoneal dialysis may require some tinkering at first since patients respond differently to the fluid used in the filtration process. For instance, a person with lots of water in the body may need a stronger fluid solution. However, if you are diabetic, you may require a non-sugar based filtering fluid.

Diet

• As you begin dialysis, maintain a strict diet in order to limit the amount of waste in your body. The less waste you have in your body, the more your body will respond to dialysis treatment. Since a high level of sodium decreases the body's ability to get rid of excess water, avoid products with high sodium content. If your body has excess water, you may need to limit the amount of fluids you drink each day. Also avoid high phosphorus products, such as nuts or soda. A kidney impaired body will have a hard time filtering phosphorus from the body.

  As you begin dialysis treatment, eat an adequate amount of protein and take special kidney disease appropriate vitamins that will give your body Vitamins B and C. Limit the amount of Vitamin A you consume because Vitamin A is dangerous for people with kidney disease.