What is Kidney dialysis?

Posted by Sanvi Khurana on September 26th, 2019

Dialysis is a procedure of removing excess waste and toxins from blood in those whose kidneys are unable to perform these functions in a natural way. Dialysis helps the body by performing the functions of failed kidneys. It is needed when your own kidneys can no longer take care of your body's needs.

Dialysis keeps the body in balance by removing waste, salt and extra water to prevent them from building up in the body and helping to control the level of patient’s blood pressure.

Based on the patient’s medical condition, a competent doctor decides where to do the Kidney dialysis – in a hospital or in a Kidney dialysis center or at patient’s residence.

Types of dialysis –Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis.

In hemodialysis, an artificial kidney is used to remove waste and extra chemicals and fluid from your blood. With a minor surgery, the doctor makes an entrance into your blood vessels, so that to get your blood into the artificial kidney.

Inperitoneal dialysis unpurified blood is cleaned inside your body. The doctor does a surgery to place a catheter – a plastic tube into the patient’s abdomen to make an access to extra fluids. Waste products are drawn out of your blood and into the dialysate.

Low Blood Pressure, anemia, difficulty in sleeping, irregular heartbeat, sepsis are few of risks associated with hemodialysis. Similarly, Peritoneal dialysis is associated with an increased risk for infections in or around the catheter site in the abdominal cavity and stomach pain, fever, hernia, weight gain are some other risks one should take care of.

Depending on the place you live in India and the hospital you visit, the cost of getting a hemodialysis can vary from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 15,000 per month while peritoneal dialysis can cost between Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000 per month.

Dialysis does not cure your kidney disease. The patient will need to have dialysis treatments for the whole life unless one gets a kidney transplant.

A person on dialysis must adhere to dialysis diet which is low in sodium, phosphorous and protein. A dialysis diet stresses the importance of consuming high-quality protein and limiting fluids. Since every patient is different, so it is better to ask a good dietician to come up with a dialysis diet that is customized to his or her needs.

If someone is on renal diet or “kidney friendly diet”, they must avoid dark-colored colas, Avocados, canned foods such as soups, vegetables, and beans, whole wheat bread, brown rice, processed meat, bananas, potatoes, dates, raisins and prunes to name a few.

There are many Kidney dialysis centers in India where they provide high-quality dialysis treatment. Patients are provided highest medical care to undergo experience in dialysis treatment.