Successful laparoscopic bariatric surgery in peritoneal dialysis patients without interruption of their CKD6...

During the past several decades, the conventional management of peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients undergoing elective abdominal surgery required a transition to hemodialysis on a temporary basis. In recent years, that protocol has been challenged by various authors who successfully repaired hernias in such subjects without interruption of their PD modality. However, that new approach was reserved for abdominal wall procedures and was not used for intra-abdominal surgery. The rapid evolution of laparoscopic surgery and the development and refinement of minimally invasive surgical techniques have revolutionized the field of surgery by providing superior outcomes for an ever-increasing list of indications including morbid obesity. The present study, the first of its kind involving elective intra-abdominal surgery, sought to determine the safety of uninterrupted PD therapy in morbidly obese patients with stage 6 chronic kidney disease undergoing laparoscopic bariatric surgery as a precursor to transplantation.