Home Hemodialysis

Home hemodialysis is done in the home by a trained patient and partner. Dialysis treatments done at home can allow a more flexible treatment schedule. Some types of treatment can be done at night when the patient is sleeping. If you are interested in home dialysis, the unit staff will discuss with you and your partner all the requirements and responsibilities needed.

You and your partner must be trained for home dialysis. The length of training will vary with each patient, partner, and dialysis unit. Training sessions usually last several hours, two or three times weekly for six to eight weeks. Through educational materials and actual experience, you and your partner will gain knowledge necessary to dialyze safely at home.

Nocturnal Home Hemodialysis

Nocturnal home hemodialysis is hemodialysis therapy performed at home, at night while you sleep. Patients dialyze between seven to eight hours every other night. Nocturnal home patients dialyze at slower blood flow rates and for longer periods of time so they do not experience the physical ups and downs that regular hemodialysis or conventional home hemodialysis patients do, such as low blood pressure and cramping.

The additional time on dialysis allows the patient to have improved fluid and waste removal, and may be able to decrease or discontinue some medications. Most importantly it allows the patient to feel better.

Remote Computer Monitoring allows patients without partners to be on nocturnal home hemodialysis. A person (observer) is able to monitor and observe all of the alarms and readings a patient is seeing on his/her machine at home. The observer is stationed at a remote site (clinic). This measure provides the patient with a long distance partner and additional safety and security while they sleep.

Incenter Nocturnal Dialysis is available for patients needing and wanting the benefits of nocturnal home hemodialysis but unwilling or unable to dialyze at home. Incenter nocturnal hemodialysis patients dialyze in the clinic in a bed for eight hours, three nights a week.

For More information on home hemodialysis treatment method:

Visit Home Dialysis Central at http://www.homedialysis.org/. The Medical Education Institute (MEI) developed this site to raise the awareness and use of peritoneal dialysis (PD) and home hemodialysis.

View videos of patients at the Lynchburg Nephrology Center discussing their experiences on Home Hemodialysis.

 

Last updated on: February 22, 2008