Harefuah
-
Peritoneal dialysis is now one of the main methods of treating acute and chronic renal failure, and the number of patients treated by continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD), instead of hemodialysis, is increasing. The most commonly used device for CAPD is the Tenkhoff catheter. The major complications after its insertion are infection and catheter obstruction. ⋯ Peritonitis followed in 14 cases, but in 12 of them it completely resolved after administration of antibiotics. Over a follow-up period of 32 months there was only 1 case of catheter obstruction, significantly fewer than reported in other series. We conclude that routine omentectomy during insertion of the Tenckhoff catheter for CAPD under local anesthesia is safe and reduces the incidence of catheter obstruction during short and long term use.
-
A review of 871 consecutive patients referred to our surgical emergency room is presented. 54% were self-referred, 18% were soldiers referred by army physicians and only 8% were referred by family physicians. Only 60% lived in the hospital admission area. The average stay in the emergency room was 4.1 hours, and only 6.5% needed to be hospitalized. We suggest setting up first aid stations in hospitals to serve as pre-emergency rooms, and that only cases that really require its services be referred to the emergency room.