Dialysate Composition in Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis

The goal of dialysis for patients with chronic renal failure is to restore the composition of the body’s fluid environment toward normal. This is accomplished principally by formulating a dialysate whose constituent concentrations are set to approximate normal values in the body. Over time, by diffusional transfer along favorable concentration gradients, the concentrations of solutes that were initially increased or decreased tend to be corrected. When an abnormal electrolyte concentration poses immediate danger, the dialysate concentration of that electrolyte can be set at a nonphysiologic level to achieve a more rapid correction. On a more chronic basis the composition of the dialysate can be individually adjusted in order to meet the specific needs of each patient. Dialysate Composition for Hemodialysis