The use and complications of three peritoneal dialysis catheter designs. A retrospective analysis

Three types of peritoneal dialysis catheters were used for maintenance peritoneal dialysis access. Seventy-nine single-cuff Tenckhoff catheters, 63 double-cuff Tenckhoff catheters, and 53 Oreopoulos-Zellerman (Toronto-Western) catheters were placed into 147 patients between 1980 and 1984. The double-cuff Tenckhoff catheter proved the most durable of the catheter designs, with a median survival of 19.1 months. Single-cuff catheters exhibited a high risk of failure due to late exit site complications, while surgically placed Oreopoulos-Zellerman catheters often required removal to permit eradication of peritonitis.