Kidney dialysis

Kidney dialysis removes waste products and excess fluid from blood when the kidneys cannot do so adequately. Its main forms are hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis.

Hemodialysis: A dialysis method that circulates blood through an external filter and returns it to the body. This form moves blood through a dialyzer outside the body.
Vascular access for hemodialysis: A surgically created or placed route that allows blood to flow to and from a hemodialysis machine. Reliable access is needed for repeated blood circulation through a dialyzer.
Nephron: The microscopic functional unit of a kidney that filters blood and modifies the resulting fluid. Dialysis substitutes for only some functions performed across millions of nephrons.
Continuous renal replacement therapy: A prolonged, slow form of extracorporeal blood purification used mainly in critically ill patients. Its continuous schedule differs from the intermittent sessions typical of hemodialysis.
Peritoneal dialysis: A dialysis method that uses the lining of the abdomen as a membrane to exchange waste and fluid with dialysis solution. This form uses the peritoneum instead of an external filter.
Arteriovenous fistula: A surgically created connection between an artery and a vein, often used for hemodialysis access. It is a preferred long-term access option for many people receiving hemodialysis.
Glomerular filtration rate: A measure of how much fluid the kidney glomeruli filter from blood per unit time. It helps describe kidney function and the severity of its loss.
Hemofiltration: An extracorporeal treatment that removes water and solutes mainly by convection across a membrane. It clears solutes chiefly by fluid-driven transport rather than dialysis diffusion.
Dialysis membrane: A selectively permeable barrier that allows some dissolved substances and water to cross while retaining others. Waste and fluid cross this barrier during both major dialysis methods.
Home hemodialysis: Hemodialysis performed at home using equipment and training supplied by a dialysis program. It adapts the external-filter method to a home setting.

Linked from 11 pages