The dialysis access is your lifeline. It allows the patient to receive life-saving hemodialysis treatments. If the dialysis access is not working properly, the dialysis treatments will not be as effective as they need to be. If the dialysis access clots, the patient will not be able to have dialysis treatments until it is repaired or replaced.

In the past, when the dialysis access required attention, the patient was admitted to the hospital where they might spend several days. Now there is better, easier, and less expensive ways to repair the dialysis access. It is a procedure that is performed at the AKDHC ASC.

Testing Your Dialysis Access

The blood flow through the dialysis access is routinely monitored during the dialysis treatments. If it is determined that the blood is not moving through the dialysis access as freely as it should, the patient's doctor will be notified to review the test findings. If the physician determines that the reduced blood flow affects the patient's ability to dialyze properly, the best choice would be a referral to AKDHC ASC.

Placing and Maintaining Your Dialysis Access

At ASC, the dialysis access is viewed via a special X-ray procedure. First, the access is injected with a dye so the physician can visualize the condition of the access, including the blood vessels coming to and from the main access. If there is a narrowing or blockage, a catheter with a balloon at the tip is inserted into the area and expanded. The balloon is inflated, which stretches the narrow area back to the right size. At this time, any clots in the dialysis access are removed when the balloon is removed. The blood can once again flow more freely and will improve the general health because dialysis treatments will be more effective. The entire procedure takes about two hours, depending on the number of clots and the degree of narrowing of the blood vessels around the dialysis access.

In the rare instance that the dialysis access cannot be repaired in this manner and a surgery is required, the results obtained from this procedure will give the surgeon useful and important information regarding the problem areas within the patient's dialysis access.