My Mother has been doing peritoneal dialysis since Aug 04. Recently she has been having alot of heartburn or thats what she thinks. She eats small meals and trys not to eat close to bedtime. Anyone with similar problem or advice.
There have been some studies that showed a higher number of people on PD have heartburn than on hemodialysis. Here’s a fact sheet on GERD that might help your mom figure out if this seems to describe her symptoms, if she can get an idea of anything that she’s doing that might be making her symptoms worse, or if she gets any ideas that might help.
I’d suggest she ask her PD nurse if other patients have reported these symptoms and what helped them. She should also report her symptoms to her nephrologist and ask what might be causing them. A gastroenterologist (GI specialist) is the best doctor to evaluate her symptoms and recommend treatments that could reduce or eliminate them to prevent long-term complications. If the GI evaluation shows nothing is wrong, her doctor may suggest that she be evaluated for other possible conditions that produce heartburn-like symptoms, like heart disease, gallstones, hiatal hernia, etc.
Hi - I wanted to address the issue of heartburn and PD. I have beenon PD for almost 6 months and have NEVER encountered heartburn until this experience. I get it regularly - and I am burping constantly (also something I have not been prone to before.) Furthermore, I can cough a little sometimes, and next thing I know I am throwing up whatever can be found in my tummy.
I am so grateful to be alive that I take it in my stride (and do a lot of apologising for burping in quiet, public places!) and prefer not to be taking any medication.
In the grand scheme of things, not a big deal - keeping things in proportion is important.
Take care all - Debbie