Issues affecting the longevity of the continuous peritoneal dialysis therapy

Continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) is one of the accepted dialysis modalities worldwide. However, the longevity of the CAPD technique and the patient survival associated with this modality have not been established. We review our 16 year experience in one treatment center in 224 patients who underwent CAPD. Overall, these patients survived on CAPD for a mean of 6.6 years; a 50% survival was reached at a mean of 5.5 years. Ultrafiltration loss was the most prominent cause of withdrawal from CAPD among patients in whom the technique was successful for more than 6 years. Countermeasures to decrease the CAPD-associated morbidity are crucial to prolonging the success of the technique, and thus increasing the duration of patient survival.