The exact supply requirements will depend on whether you're doing manual PD or automatic with a cycler. All supplies are delivered by the Baxter or Fresenius people once a month or every two weeks. I can only really give you details on the Fresenius equipment, as that's what I use. Baxter will be similar with minor differences. Since I use two 5 liter bags each night, I have 30 boxes just for one month, each box holding two bags. In case of emergency, you're supposed to keep an additional 2 weeks of supplies on hand, plus there are three different dextrose concentrations of fluid for pulling off different amounts of fluid, so you'll be keeping a variety on hand. I'd expect 5 or 6 stacks of boxes up to your chest and about 2 feet wide, just for the fluid.
If you're doing manual you'll be doing 4 or 5 exchanges a day. Each bag is a twin bag with a connector between them - Fresenius stay-safe is a dial that fits into the organizer widget on the IV pole. First you set it to drain, and unclamp your clamp, then the fluid that's in you drains into the drain bag, which you've placed on the floor. Once that's done, you switch to fill, and the bag of fresh fluid, which is hanging above you from the IV pole, starts to drain into you. You should get a hanging scale ("fish scale") to hang the bag from, so if you don't use the whole bag, you can see how much you've used. When you're done, you go drain the bags into the toilet (easiest is if you keep a pair of scissors, and cut the corner of the bag). Then throw out the empty bags.
If you're on a cycler, you'll use one set of individual bags per night, plus a set of tubing. For my Fresenius Liberty cycler, I use two 5 liter bags and one cassette - it's an interesting piece of molded plastic with a latex membrane, that allows the pumps to push and pull fluid, but without ever contacting the fluid itself, it keep things clean. The tubing is connected to the cassette, and hangs out of the machine for you to connect to the bags. All those details will be covered in your cycler training, if you get on the cycler.
The drain line can go into a set of drain bags (supplied with your monthly delivery if you need them), or a bucket, or directly into the toilet if the line can reach. I use cassettes with extra long lines - both the patient line and the drain line are 20 feet. The fluid smells, well, I'm bad at describing smells. It's not putrid or really like urine, but it might smell bad to some people. It's pretty mild to me, and my mother even thinks it smells a little good, close to vanilla (but I disagree
).
The output of fluid, if you dialysis is working well and you don't have much residual kidney function left, should be greater than the input because you'll be pulling off fluid. Every night, I use 10000 ml of fluid and have 800-1300 ml ultrafiltration, so if I were to use drain bags they'd be holding 10800-11300 ml of effluent. Actually, I do a manual fill in the evening, so that's another 1500+ to add on to that. My drain sets are split into 4 bags that each detach, so they can easily be carried to the bathroom to drain. Keep in mind 10 liters weighs over 22 pounds, so each bag in my drain set is easier to carry at about 5 1/2 pounds.
You'll drain yourself completely before each fill. With the cycler, it does that for you several times a night.
Okay, information overload, I know
but I think I answered all your questions.
I Hate Dialysis Message Board
Author
