[Peritoneal complications during continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis: surgical aspects]

The principal complication of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) is peritonitis in most cases benign and treated effectively by local, specific antibiotic therapy. In some cases, however, the infection fails to respond to medical treatment and surgical exploration occasionally reveals serious lesions such as sclerosing peritonitis or an intestinal perforation. Prognosis is dependent not only on the extent and severity of the lesion but also on the rapidity of operative intervention. The development of an appendicitis, often masked by early antibiotic therapy, represents a particular course of peritoneal infection during CAPD.