Peritoneal Dialysis

Abstract

THE technic of peritoneal dialysis was first used to treat uremia in man about forty years ago.¹ Early complications of overhydration, infection and peripheral vascular collapse, together with the inadequacy of the catheters used and the difficulty in draining the irrigating fluid, did much to prevent its development as a routine procedure. The procedure was extensively explored by Frank, Seligman and Fine,² using surgically inserted sump drains. With this technic, however, infection was common and prevented its widespread use. The introduction of a method employing a plastic catheter inserted through the hollow trocar used for an ordinary abdominal paracentesis has . . .