I Hate Dialysis Message Board

Dialysis Discussion => Dialysis: General Discussion => Topic started by: sullidog on May 24, 2011, 07:36:07 PM

Title: fistula no longer communicating?
Post by: sullidog on May 24, 2011, 07:36:07 PM
There's a patient at my center who is dialyzing through a catheter now but he lost his fistula for a weird reason. It still has a thrill and everything, but he was told that the fistula is no longer communicating do to the number of fistula grams he's had done, anyone ever heard of this? I've never seen that as a reason why a fistula was dead, I thought it was just clotting off and no thrill as fistula issues, I thought if you had a good thrill the fistula was working? Am I missing something?
Troy
Title: Re: fistula no longer communicating?
Post by: Bruno on May 25, 2011, 02:05:21 AM
Stenosis?
Title: Re: fistula no longer communicating?
Post by: willowtreewren on May 25, 2011, 10:00:01 AM
There are things that can go wrong with a fistula, but this does sound a bit strange. One would think that if the blood were flowing (giving the thrill) and the volume is high enough, dialysis should work.

It may be possible, though, that the walls of the fistula have gotten too weak from the number of fistulagrams and the doctors are leery of having it blow.

Perhaps the patient misunderstood what the doctors said. You know...dialysis brain.  :rofl;

Aleta
Title: Re: fistula no longer communicating?
Post by: sullidog on May 25, 2011, 05:43:04 PM
Yeah sounded weird to me, he's had it for 13 years. He says there's good flow it just that the fistula will no longer communicate with the machine. Weird and makes me wonder if he misunderstood something.
Title: Re: fistula no longer communicating?
Post by: Zach on May 25, 2011, 05:46:36 PM
Yeah sounded weird to me, he's had it for 13 years. He says there's good flow it just that the fistula will no longer communicate with the machine. Weird and makes me wonder if he misunderstood something.

Hello ... Hello ... Hello?
 :waving;
Title: Re: fistula no longer communicating?
Post by: huldafolk on May 26, 2011, 08:47:08 AM
Sounds like he didn't understand what was being said to him.  How does a fistula possibly communicate with a dialysis machine??? Morse code???
Title: Re: fistula no longer communicating?
Post by: PatDowns on May 26, 2011, 11:03:44 AM
MD probably said blood recirculation problem due to blockage.