Your dialysis treatments will be most successful if your access is functioning well. Taking good care of your access requires following preventative measures advised by your nephrologist, including being aware of the signs and signals of a dysfunctional access.
You will become familiar with normal sounds and recognize anything unusual, such as pitch changes or whistles or coughing sounds.
If your dialysis access is not working properly, there are minimally invasive treatments available to correct the problem.
What dialysis access care treatments are available for a dysfunctional access?
When an AV fistula or AV graft clots or narrows, blood flow through the access is decreased, which could prevent a person from undergoing a scheduled dialysis treatment. When your access becomes dysfunctional,your physician may prescribe an interventional procedure to improve the blood flow through your access. There are several minimally invasive procedures available that can treat a dysfunctional access and allow a person to return to their regularly scheduled dialysis treatments quickly.
These include:
Benefits of minimally invasive treatments of a dysfunctional access
Treating a dysfunctional access with minimally invasive procedures to correct blood flow offers several benefits.
- Typically only local versus general anesthesia is used
- Quick return to daily activities
- Resume or continue with your scheduled dialysis treatments without interruption
How we can help you
Our team of physicians specialize in the field of dialysis access management. Our interventional specialists and vascular surgeons successfully treat dysfunctional accesses with minimally invasive procedures, such as angioplasty with or without stenting, thrombectomy and the MILLER procedure for Steal Syndrome. All of our procedures are performed in outpatient centers with results communicated promptly to your dialysis care team, ensuring continuity of care.
At Azura, we work every day to deliver far more than our patients expect. We bring our full range of medical capabilities and service excellence to every patient, every visit at each of our centers nationwide.
If you would like to learn more about a specific medical condition leading to dialysis, or about dialysis itself, Fresenius Kidney Care is your complete resource for CKD.
If you are ready to consult with one of our specialists, find a center near you or search for one of our physicians.
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