2026 Volume 59 Issue 2 Pages 40-47
Inappropriate peritoneal dialysis (PD) catheter positioning results in residual dialysis fluid within the peritoneal cavity. This residual fluid can be absorbed and cause fluid overload in PD patients. Therefore, it is ideal for the catheter to be located in a position where all dialysis fluid can be rapidly drained. We investigated catheter positioning in 14 patients who underwent catheterization over a period of 1 year and 6 months from June 2020 in our hospital, and aimed to determine ideal positioning that would facilitate good dialysis fluid drainage. We then performed “standard catheter placement” in 21 new patients, with the same positioning of the inner cuff and catheter fixation to the abdominal wall using an identical catheter from January 2022 to December 2023. At the start of peritoneal dialysis in these patients, the catheter tip located in the Douglas fossa improved from 57％ (8 /14 patients) to 81％ (17/21 patients). The incidence of patients in whom dialysis fluid remained in the Douglas pouch after peritoneal dialysis fluid removal decreased from 43％ (6/14 patients) to 14％ (3/21 patients) (p ＜ 0.05). Insufficient dialysis fluid output improved from 28％ (4/14 patients) to 10％ (2/21 patients). The number of patients in whom it took a long time for the dialysis fluid to be drained decreased from 29％ (4/14 patients) to 0％ (0 patients). Therefore, this novel catheterization method was considered useful.
