Some people have health complications. These include progressive nerve damage, problems regulating insulin dosages, malnutrition, increased rates of infection, and increased problems accessing the blood vessels. Sometimes, these complications are the result of diabetes, not of hemodialysis. Hemodialysis can cause other problems as well. These include high or low blood pressure, upset stomach or vomiting, anemia, and bone disease.
Many doctors think peritoneal dialysis a better treatment than hemodialysis.
There are a variety of methods. The principles for peritoneal dialysis are similar to those for hemodialysis. But instead of blood being cleaned in an artificial kidney, the body itself is used as a filter. In peritoneal dialysis, wastes are filtered out of the blood through the peritoneum. The peritoneum is a thin membrane that lines the abdominal cavity.