AV Fistula – The Dialysis Lifeline

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Posted by Julius Santos on Apr 2, 2009 in Dialysis, Health, Journals, Kidney Failure | 0 comments

In every dialysis session, a patient’s blood is cleaned through a dialysis machine. The process is quite simple: the machine is hooked through bloodlines in the arm, blood is pumped through the machine, cleaned, and then returned to the patient. This is a continous process in which only 300 millileters of blood per minute is cycled throughout the 4-hour session.

You might be windering how the bloodlines are hooked on the patient? Well, first and foresmost, before you can be hooked to a dialysis machine, you must have an access for the bloodlines. There are various kinds of access for the kidney patient, and one of the most common form is the Arterio-Venous Fistula or AV-Fistula or simply Fistula. What is a Fistula?

Definition

An arteriovenous fistula (AV fistula) is the connection of a vein and an artery, usually in the forearm, to allow access to the vascular system for hemodialysis, a procedure that performs the functions of the kidneys in people whose kidneys have failed. Connecting the vein and artery is a surgical procedure. The fistula develops over a period of months after the surgery.

Sometimes dialysis is only needed temporarily, but some people need it for the rest of their lives or until a kidney is available for a transplant. When kidney failure is diagnosed, time is needed to prepare the patient’s body with either an AV fistula or implantable devices that will connect the person to the dialysis machine.

Purpose

The surgical creation of an AV fistula provides a long-lasting site through which blood can be removed and returned during hemodialysis. The fistula, which allows the person to be connected to a dialysis machine, must be prepared by a surgeon weeks or months before dialysis is started. When the vein and artery are joined, the vein gradually becomes larger and stronger, creating the fistula that provides vascular access years longer than other types of access and with fewer complications.

»data courtesy of Encyclopedia of Surgery«

A patient’s fistula is his lifeline in dialysis for a simple reason that without it, he cannot be hooked to a dialysis machne and cannot be treated. He is the one responsible for its care — by avoiding various things and instances that might put excessive pressure on the arm where the fistula is located. One example is lifting heavy objects with your access arm. Another is allowing your blood pressure readings to be taken on that arm. These are the things a patient must always keep in mind for the preservation of his AV Fistula.