Re: is this accurate information?

Discussions for Patients, Family, and Friends HD For Patients
1

Hi everyone,
I read this on a website and it is the first time I have heard of it.
i knew that the dialysate was low in the toxins that are in the blood and therefore the wastes moves across from the blood to the dialysate. But i did’nt know it also added chemicals to our blood that were needed. I thought that it didn’t cross over at all. I am wondering about this because I have been told that the dialysate isn’t 100% sterile, but if it is crossing over into your blood shouldn’t it be?
please read it and let me know what you think
Queenie.

"Diffusion is the process by which waste products are removed from the blood. This process is sometimes compared to what happens when you make a cup of tea. Think of the tea bag as a filtering membrane, similar to the dialyzer. The tea leaves are like red blood cells and waste products, and the water is like clean dialysate solution. When you dip the tea bag into the hot water, the flavoring and color inside the leaves pass through the tea bag into the water, but the tealeaves can’t pass through because they are larger than the holes in the bag. The longer you leave the tea bag in the water, the more color and flavor you get. This is because the ingredients in the tea on one side of the tea bag pass through to the less concentrated clear water on the other side until the flavor and color are equally distributed on both sides of the bag.
This is how the membrane in the dialyzer holds back the larger red blood cells, while allowing the smaller waste products (BUN, creatinine) to pass through. Before dialysis, your blood has a high concentration of waste products, but the dialysate has none. Therefore, as both solutions pass through the dialyzer, some of the waste particles in your blood travel through the membrane to the dialysate side to equal things out. Meanwhile, there are higher concentrations of certain chemicals and other substances your body may need in the dialysate, so those pass through the membrane to enrich your blood."

this is the website I read this on.

http://www.kidney.org/kls/patients/plu_hemo/pluo_3.cfm

2

Without dialysate you’d faint and prolly pass out after a while…dialysate contains the necessary minerals like calcium, sodium, and pottasium and other such ingredients…keeps our blood at a balanced state. Only thing is that our blood has more particles than the dialysate which is the reason of diffusion…

Sterile dialysate only needs to pass once through the dialyzer…non-sterile dialysate passes more than once…

3

Thanks Gus for your reply,
I know we need to use dailysate, but what I didnt understand is that I have been told that the dialysate isnt sterile. I was under the impression that it didnt need to be, and that it didnt mix with our blood. But, after reading this I learn that dialysate does mix with our blood. So, I guess all centres are different, I will have to ask our tech’s about this.

Do all people who are doing dialysis use sterile dialysate in the states?

just wondering and alittle concerned. Thanks for you reply Gus.
Queenie

4

The dialysate circuit in conventional dialysis machine is not considered to be sterile. The water used to make the dialysate is ultrapure and virtually sterile, but once it’s mixed, the dialysate itself is not sterile. It couldn’t be, because you’re using open jugs of liquid to make up the dialysate. Things that equalize across the membrane, like electrolytes for example, will go from the side with more of it, to the side with less of it, but, it’s not the actual dialysate crossing over to the blood, only molecules of specific elements. If you have ever noticed how it’s done in dialysis centres, there is no disinfection of the dialysate circuit from one patient to the next. It’s not needed.
Pierre

5

Thank you Pierre,

for answering my question. I understand it better now. :slight_smile:

regards Queenie.