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  • New PD catheter technique uses Amplatz dilators

    A laparoscope paired with Amplatz dilators to form the skin tunnel was used in 100 people who needed a PD catheter. The omentum was trimmed if it was long, and adhesions were lysed when present. There were no exit site or tunnel infections with this technique, and no catheter cuff extrusions. No catheters migrated or were displaced—and 97% of the catheters were working 6 months later.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2014-12-09)

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  • PD catheter tunnel and exit site infections more likely with poor glycemic control—but not peritonitis

    Diabetes is known to raise the risk of infection. A study that looked back at blood sugar levels of 183 people new to PD, those with poor glycemic control had almost twice as many catheter tunnel and exit site infections, and had a first infection much sooner (p = 0.004). But, there was no increase in the risk of peritonitis.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2014-10-07)

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  • Does polyhexanide solution reduce PD exit site infections?

    In a 12-month trial of 46 people on PD, 20% of those in Group A (randomized to standard exit site care with saline and povidone iodine) had an exit site infection. Just 6.7% of Group B (randomized to polyhexanide solution) did (p=0.037), and there were no side effects or allergies. The authors suggest use of polyhexanide for the care of healthy PD exit sites.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2014-03-07)

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  • Is there a new way to prevent PD infections? Sorry, honey

    Honey has a long history of helping to heal wounds—with no risk of antibiotic resistance. But, a recent trial of the sweet stuff in PD exit site infections did not show a benefit. Researchers asked 186 patients from 26 clinics in Australia and New Zealand to put purified honey on their exit sites, while a control group (185 people) used standard care (or mupirocin if they carried S aureus). The time to first infection was about the same in both groups.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2013-11-06)

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  • Better Blood Sugar Control, Fewer PD Infections

    No surprises here: blood sugar control matters in PD. A study that looked back at 183 PD patients found that those with poor control were more than twice as likely to have had an exit site or catheter infection as those with good control.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2013-07-17)

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  • Are infections requiring hospitalization more common with PD or standard HD?

    A study in Canada paired 910 people on PD with people on HD, matched by age, race, smoking, BMI, comorbid conditions, and lab data. After 2 years, researchers found that those on PD were more likely to be in the hospital for peritonitis—but less likely to have sepsis or pneumonia than those on standard HD.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2012-09-25)

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  • A "self-locating" PD catheter

    The Di Paolo self-locating PD catheter was tested in 20 patients in Italy. The researchers found no infections, and only 0.8% dislocated catheters—vs. 12% for Tenkhoff PD catheters.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2012-09-25)

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  • Mupirocin best for preventing PD exit site infections

    A new double blind, controlled study of mupirocin antibiotic ointment vs. polysporin found that mupirocin came out on top. Twice as many patients who used polysporin had exit site redness and they were more likely to get fungal infections.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2012-08-16)

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  • Antibiotic ointment reduces PD exit site infections, but not peritonitis

    Researchers studied 1,270 people who used mupirocin ointment on their PD catheters, 502 used gentamycin, and 1,203 did not use an antibiotic ointment. While the ointments helped prevent exit site infections, they did not reduce the rate of peritonitis.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2012-01-26)

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  • Mupirocin beats polysporin triple ointment (P3) for preventing PD catheter infections

    In an 18-month long randomized, controlled study, twice as many patients had redness at the PD catheter exit site and more fungal infections occurred in those using P3 than mupirocin.

    Read the abstract » | (added 2011-12-22)

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