How To Cope With Common Side Effects Of Dialysis In Elders

I went to visit one of my friend’s father-in-law who was in the end stages of kidney disease; he was on dialysis, a lifesaving medical procedure used to filter blood from the kidney; vital organs that filter toxins and waste products out of the blood to be eliminated from the body through the urine.

This medical procedure lasts for a few hours and could leave the elder lethargic or even depressed with a set of common side effects. A doctor may suggest any one of the two types of dialysis namely peritoneal dialysis or hem dialysis; peritoneal dialysis is performed at home and is quite often employed for end-stage kidney disease patients, while hem dialysis requires a visit the hospital or a clinic to get your dialysis.

Some common side effects of dialysis:

Both hem dialysis and peritoneal dialysis have some common side effects like infection, hernias, nutritional deficiencies, low blood pressure, muscle cramps, clotting issues, nausea, dry and itching skin and movement issues.

Every 1 out of 4 elder undergoing dialysis has a common complaint of low blood pressure signified by his/her feeling dizzy and weak. This calls for the elder to drink 6-8 glasses of water a day; this will help not only to increase the blood pressure, but would also help the proper functioning of the body. The elder should also avoid salty foods as this could lead to retention of fluids in the body.

Dry and an itchy skin, another common problem of an elder that undergoes dialysis can be combated by using a moisturizer or lotion on a daily basis. It is best to note here that lotions with fragrance should be strictly avoided as they could dry the skin further. It is also significant to find that dry and an itchy skin could in some cases escalate to eczema that needs to be treated with a prescribed tropical lotion.  

Nausea, another predominant side effect of not only dialysis, but also kidney disease and low blood pressure could be best cured by strong anti-nausea medications that are prescribed by your doctor or his dialysis team.

Muscle cramping if severe could cause a lot of pain; a common side effect of dialysis, it could be relieved to some extent by stretching one’s legs or taking frequent walks. Elder undergoing dialysis could relax the muscles by light exercise and with using ice or heating pads on ones legs at night that helps to improve the circulation in your muscles and reduce your pain.

Restless leg syndrome, a common side effect of kidney disease and dialysis could hinder ones sleep and also disturb other in the room; this is a sign of many other health issues also. Consult your doctor immediately to discuss the issue of restless leg syndrome.  

To conclude dialysis, a lifesaving treatment that allows people to live for many years with kidney disease unfortunately has various side effects. It is best to talk to the elder’s doctor and dialysis team about the side effects; they could probably adjust the medications to ease the side effects of dialysis treatment.