Kidney Patient Guide

I found a few organizations selling green wristbands for organ donation. Unfortunately, my aged computer crashed and I haven't been able to resurrect the files from it onto my new one. When and if I do, I will post those websites.

I'm in the U.S. I was taught always to wear a mask when connecting and disconnecting. I also was taught to keep the dog out and close off all sources or air movement (heaters, a/c, windows, etc.) when connecting. Who's right? Dunno.

I'm in a little bit different situation from you. I got in 30+ years of teaching before diabetes and renal failure forced me into retirement. For a while I was in really bad emotional shape as I could barely see (diabetic retinopathy) and was forced to stop reading and using the computer--my two fav...

I've been both nasty and nice and I've found that generally I get more and feel better by being nice. Most nurses and hospital personnel are underpaid and overworked and just trying to do their best. It doesn't pay to hurt them. Also, as a general rule, I try not to offend people who are coming at m...

I'm no doctor, but the symptoms your mother is experiencing are much like I had when I had kidney stones. Has she been tested for stones? I don't know much about nephritis. If you Google kidney dosease, dialysis, etc., you will come up with more references than you can handle. One that is good is ht...

Michelle-- Sorry to hear of all the problems you've been through. You seem to have made the decision to do CCPD and I think that is probably the right decision for you. PD, among other things, is much easier on the body and you don't have the extreme blood pressure drop and tiredness associated with...

Les-- Why is hemo the only type of dialysis for you? I was given the choice of peritoneal dialysis or hemo. I chose PD. With PD you do your exchanges at home and, by using a cycler at night, you can eliminate daytime dialysis, or at least cut it down to one daytime exchange. This leaves you lots of ...

After I had been on PD for a few weeks I noticed a pinkish color in my drain bag, especially in the first rush of fluid. It turned out to be the betadine in the sponge of the mini-cap. If you're seeing a really light color in the bag it could be from the betadine.

I've always believed in being honest with children, but at the same time trying not to confuse them. Often they just want a simple one-sentence statement to answer the specific question in their brain--which may not be the same question as what they have asked. Children often need just a little info...

In the U.S. there is a federal law which prohibits the release of medical records to anyone (except parents, legal guardians, etc.) without signed permission from the patient. Even the police, government and the almighty medical insurance companies need permission or a court order. Although it somet...

Lady S:

I do all manual exchanges. The bags I use come with a full and an empty bag connected by tubing to a y-connector which screws onto my transer set. It is the drain bag in this setup which has caused the problem.

Bruce

To all of you using Baxter's ultrabag-- I just had my third leaky drain bag since August. Since I'm not as stupid as I look I have learned to put the drain bag into a Rubbermaid basin. Christmas Eve night is not the time I really want to start shampooing a carpet. I sent the first leakers back to Ba...

Mike-

Tape the tube to your belly and forget about it. If you want, there are belts available to hold the catheter in place. Go for it! --Bruce

To all Kidney Patients on This Board:

A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all from "The Colonies" where we're slowly climbing out of a deep freeze in New York and hoping for better weather. Let's hope we all don't get too far off our diets.

--Bruce

Dear Vikki: Welcome to the club! You have come to the right place for help. Feel free to ask anything you want and remember there is no such thing as a stupid question. Which dialysis to use? It's a personal choice, although sometimes you have to fight to do the one you want. HD requires a fistula o...