Peritonitis incidence on a disconnect CAPD-system with or without the use of iodine clamp shields

The purpose of the study was to review a single center's experience with the disconnect system for continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD), and to evaluate peritonitis incidence with and without use of iodine-containing clamp shields. The retrospective review of patients using the disconnect system lasted from January 1991 throughout March 1993, evaluating the peritonitis incidence with and without use of iodine clamp shields. In the observation period, a total of 103 patients were evaluated. Of these, 42 patients were treated with iodine clamp shields until July 1992 and then were instructed not to use the iodine clamp shields, thus acting as their own controls. We found an overall peritonitis incidence of 0.411 episodes/patient/year (= 29.2 patient-months/episode) on disconnect CAPD-system (Baxter), in spite of the fact that more than 60% of our dialysis population is treated with peritoneal dialysis. We found no difference in peritonitis rates with or without the use of iodine clamp shields. Peritonitis rates with clamp shields were 0.400 episodes/patient/year and, without clamp shields, were 0.400 episodes/patient/year. The introduction of a disconnect system provided a system with low incidence of peritonitis. No difference in peritonitis rates was observed with or without the use of iodine clamp shields, allowing us to reduce the cost of treatment and to simplify training procedures.