Weight control for renal failure

In addition to a lifestyle that is closely adapted to their illness, patients who need dialysis must also monitor their weight. In doing this, they have to pay particular attention to their fluid balance.

Dialysis for chronic kidney failure

Patients with chronic kidney failure need dialysis (hemodialysis) around three times a week. During this procedure, blood is removed from the patient through a shunt and filtered outside the body. Using a special membrane, electrolytes are exchanged and metabolic products filtered out. The filtered blood is returned to the dialysis patient's body in the same way it was removed.

The role of weight in dialysis

Patients with healthy kidneys need water to eliminate metabolic products and produce urine. The same principle applies during hemodialysis. However, here water is not removed throughout the day, as it is in patients with healthy kidneys, but during the relatively short dialysis period instead.

The patient is therefore weighed before the treatment. The doctor establishes the dry weight of the patient before dialysis begins. During dialysis, the patient needs to be given the difference between his or her body weight and the dry weight in fluids. This balances out the water removed during dialysis. Weight control is therefore an important part of treatment.

Risks associated with dialysis

Thanks to cutting-edge dialysis machines and sensitive monitoring equipment, hemodialysis brings with it few risks or complications. During peritoneal dialysis, carried out at home by patients themselves, patients need to monitor their own fluid balance. Accurate scales are essential for this.

Due to the detoxification process and removal of water in hemodialysis, there is a certain risk of incidents. If the organism is detoxified too quickly or too much water is removed, the changes it experiences are too great. This may lead to headaches, muscle cramps, low blood pressure or nausea.

Measuring blood pressure for renal failure

In addition to weight control, it is important to take regular blood pressure measurements. In the event of dehydration, blood pressure can drop too sharply (hypotension), which dramatically weakens the circulation. Consequences may include dizziness, tiredness, or a circulatory collapse.
BodyTel offers WeightTel, body scales, and PressureTel, an upper arm blood pressure measuring device, which automatically record the measurement values in a personal diary.