Kidney Dialysis

Kidney Dialysis By Kari Lewis What is Kidney Dialysis?    Kidney dialysis is a procedure that is given to people who have lost a kidney, have kidney problems due to birth defects, or who have kidney failure. Dialysis is given to 217,000 Americans and costs roughly 11.1 billion dollars nationwide. Nearly twenty-five percent of all dialysis patients are over the age of sixty-five. How Dialysis Works     The kidneys are important to the body because they remove extra wastes and fluids from the blood. When the kidneys shut down they are unable to perform this function and the wastes can harm the body. Dialysis is not a cure for kidney failure; it acts as an artificial kidney in order to give kidneys a chance to rest, and to prolong lives of those who have permanent kidney failure. Dialysis is also used on patients who are waiting for a kidney transplant. Patients are generally required to go to a special Kidney Dialysis Center for treatment. There are specialists in the medical field who are trained specifically for dialysis, since it is imperative that the treatment be conducted correctly. At the center patients are hooked up to the dialysis machine by two needles. One needle captures blood that leaves the body and goes into the machine. As the blood circulates inside the machine, wastes and extra fluid are removed from the blood. The patients blood is then returned to the body via the second needle. There are two types of dialysis treatment: hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Nearly ninety percent of all dialysis patients receive hemodialysis. The Future of Dialysis   Doctors are working hard to fine-tune the dialysis system for the future. They are trying to find ways to put essential substances back into the blood by using dialysis. Because there are so many people waiting for kidneys, and such a shortage of donors, doctors are looking for new ways to provide the transplants, maybe by using animals such as pigs. However, until these new ideas fall into place, patients will have to rely on dialysis. My grandfather is a ninety year old dialysis patient who will probably be on dialysis for the rest of his life. In his case his body is too frail to go through with a transplant. He and my grandma go to the center three days a week. The procedure lasts for three hours and is very exhausting, but it is saving his life. Sources www.fda.gov www.Davita.com www.kidneydialysiscenters.com