Peritioneal dialysis is used for people suffering from what?

Answer 1

Peritoneal dialysis, like other forms of dialysis, are used for people suffering from renal failure or acute renal insufficiency. On other words, people whose kidneys have stopped functiong properly or are suddenly overwhelmed past their filtering capabilities. Dialysis as most people know it involves running the blood through an artificial membrane which replaces the kidney's filtering mechanism, then returning the blood back into the body. Peritoneal dialysis works on the same principle, except the membrane used is not an artificial membrane, rather a membrane found naturally in the body called the peritoneal membrane. This membrane is what encases most of your abdominal contents (liver, intestines, gall bladder, etc...)

Peritoneal dialysis works by filling the peritoneal cavity (the space enclosed by the peirtoneal membrane) with what is essentially a sugar solution. This solution pulls waste products out of your blood and into the peritoneal cavity. This solution is allowed to sit within the cavity for varying amounts of time (anywhere from 40 minutes to several hours), and then the solution is drained (and along with it, all those waste products).