Post-Dialysis Symptoms

[greeneyesinva]

I am a new member to the I Hate Dialysis Board on behalf of my 85-year-old dad who has been a dialysis patient (starting off on peritoneal and currently on hospital hemo) for 4+ years. We had posed a question, about some new symptoms he has been experiencing after dialysis treatments, to his medical providers but they don't seem to know the answer...so I told my dad I would join your board and ask members here. When he gets home from a treatment, he has a lot of gas, bloating and nausea (has been worse over the past few weeks); he is also (obviously) tired so had started resting in my mom's recliner upon arrival at home. That made the symptoms worse and he even had trouble catching his breath for as long as 30 minutes at a time. I suggested that he sit in a straight chair with his feet up to see if that would help; it didn't. This week, he tried lying flat on his bed and, while the symptoms weren't as pronounced, he still had them.

My dad's dialysis is done through a chest catheter--he had a fistula that worked for a couple of months and is waiting for his platelet level to increase so that he might have graft surgery in the near future.

The binder that my dad is on is TUMS. He receives hectorol and EPO at dialysis; he takes blood pressure medicines (Norvasc, Metropolol, and Avepro--not sure about the spellings!) and a baby aspirin every other day as well as a vitamin B supplement. He gets a vitamin B12 shot once a week and takes vitamin E every other day. His target weight was changed recently from 60.0kg to 60.5kg. He says that the fluid removed at each dialysis treatment is between 2000-3000cc/mg.

Last Friday, the kidney center that provides his dialysis treatments starting using a different set-up with their machines; there is less tubing, which they say should optimally provide more adequate dialysis and make it so that there is less blood out of the body at a time. I haven't seen it yet, but this is what my dad has been told. His kt/V and mean figures were better than they had been and he had far less mausea after dialysis that day than he has had--may just be a coincidence, time will tell.

Thanks for any input you are able to offer.

[looneytunes]

Hi Greeny.  Sorry for the troubles your Dad is having.  I would suggest talking to your Dad's neph on this one.  Part of it (the breathing part) sounds like a fluid issue.  But part of it sounds like maybe a gastro problem. 
 
I hope it gets resolved soon as it sounds very worrisome for you all.   

[greeneyesinva]

Good morning!!! Thanks for your reply  ...yes, any problem for/with my dad is definitely a concern for me. He has spoken with his nephrologist, nurse practitioner, and the nurses at the kidney center where he has dialysis treatments--no one seems to have a guess. His nephrologist works at a teaching hospital, which is a double-edged sword--great for cutting edge information, not so much for presence (he's into researching, lecturing, teaching, writing, and patient relations is last on the list).

Since last Friday, when some kind of new setup with the dialysis machines at the center, my dad seems to be having less of these problems. I live 70 miles from my dad and work, so I havn't been to the center yet to see what exactly the change consists of. If this solves the problem, it would be fantastic...I'm just the type that likes to know they "why's and wherefore's"...

Have a great day!!

[texasstyle]

Did I see something similar to this at another topic thread? I know I repleied to that one and am just a little confused. In the "other" thread I believe your dad was showing some improvement. I hope is still improving!