title: Peritoneal dialysis after a failed transplant.
abstract: Failed transplantation is an increasingly common cause for starting dialysis treatment. As with all patients approaching dialysis there is a need for adequate physical and psychological preparation and yet whilst by definition these individuals are known to health professionals this is not always achieved. It is likely that given adequate information, a significant proportion of these patients would prefer PD on lifestyle grounds. There is increasingly strong evidence that patients commencing PD after transplant failure enjoy overall survival and technique survival that is no different to those new to dialysis, even when other risk factors such as age, comorbidity, race, gender and membrane function are taken into account. The risk of peritonitis is also not different. These patients tend to lose residual renal function more rapidly but this does not translate into worse outcomes. The role and benefit in modulating immune suppressive drugs before and after commencing PD is not clear.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nephrology, University Hospital of North Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent and Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine, School of Medicine, Keele University, Keele, UK.
authors.forename: Biju
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: John
authors.forename: Lily
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mushahar
authors.forename: Simon J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Davies
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007165:Immunosuppression Therapy; D007668:Kidney / Q000503:physiopathology; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D010530:Peritoneal Dialysis; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D017211:Treatment Failure