Spontaneous peritoneal dialysis catheter expulsion: A case series

Abstract

There are a significant number of mechanical complications related the peritoneal dialysis (PD) catheter and early diagnosis is key. Between them, the spontaneous extrusion of the catheter is quite uncommon but it should be included among the possible complications of the technique, given that it can be related to frequent situations in PD patients like abdominal wall issues, past immunosuppression or PD fluid leakage. In 25 years our Unit had three cases, probably related to peritoneal fluid leakage, exit site infection and past steroid treatment. Careful examination of abdominal wall preimplantation, adequate break-in period to allow maturation and early detection of exit site infection to start treatment in a timely fashion could help to prevent this rare complication. The complete extrusion of the catheter does not preclude from continuing PD treatment.

Keywords: PD catheter; PD fluid leakage; Peritoneal access; access loss; extrusion.