Dialysis is also known as kidney replacement therapy. Healthy kidneys regulate the body's water and mineral levels and eliminate waste products. The kidneys also secrete some important products in the body's metabolism, but dialysis cannot do that.
A person who has lost 85 to 90 percent of their kidney function is likely to be a candidate for dialysis. If the kidneys do not work properly, the waste builds up in the blood. Eventually, this can lead to coma and death.
 Typically, patients undergoing dialysis therapy at home will have 2 to 3.5 hours of treatment for 5 to 6 days a week. However, in night dialysis, the patient undergoes dialysis treatment 3 to 6 times a week in 8-hour treatment periods, ie at bedtime.

Types of dialysis

• Intermittent hemodialysis

• Peritoneal dialysis (PD)

• Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT)

Patients may choose dialysis in outpatient dialysis clinics, or they may prefer home hemodialysis using routine day or night dialysis. Peritoneal dialysis patients may also choose between continuous outpatient peritoneal dialysis or automatic peritoneal dialysis (formerly called continuous periodic peritoneal dialysis) or a combination of both.
Hemodialysis requires permanent access to the bloodstream through a fistula, which is surgically created by connecting arteries and veins. Outpatient hemodialysis usually requires the patient to be treated 3 times a week for 3 to 5 hours each time in the dialysis unit.
In peritoneal dialysis, the body's permeable membrane, the peritoneal membrane, is used, and a catheter is surgically placed in the abdomen and peritoneal cavity.
In Continuous renal replacement therapy, dialysis fluid remains in the peritoneal cavity and is replaced manually by gravity. The dialysis fluid is changed 4 to 5 times a day and thus kept clean for 24 hours.
In automatic peritoneal dialysis, the dialysis fluid is changed frequently at night by an automatic device. During the day, it is possible that sometimes these patients change the dialysis fluid only once, for a long time and maybe the whole day.

Benefits of Peritoneal Dialysis

• Prolonged remaining renal function

• The patient's ability to achieve a more natural lifestyle

Complications of dialysis

• Peritonitis

• Lower blood pressure

• Weight gain

Nutrition and medical treatment

Objectives of medical nutrition therapy in dialysis patients, promoting corrective nutrition for patients' appetite, correcting systemic complications due to nephron loss, reducing protein catabolism to a minimum, relieving or preventing cardiovascular disease, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and ensure optimal nutrition. Because dialysis is done at home or in an outpatient unit, most patients will find in the long run that their diets have helped their treatment; For this reason, nutritionists and dieticians often provide the necessary training to patients in the same dialysis units.
Foods containing antioxidants can help neutralize free radicals and protect the body. Many foods that protect against oxidation are included in the kidney diet and are excellent options for dialysis patients or people with chronic kidney disease.

Nutritional recommendations

• Limit red meat consumption to 85-110 grams per day

• Avoid fruits and foods high in potassium

• Consume one or two cups of liquid a day

• Choose low-salt foods

• Do not use salt or salt substitutes

• Use fats and sugars to get more energy