FINDING THE RIGHT POSITION: A THREE-YEAR, SINGLE-CENTER EXPERIENCE WITH THE "SELF-LOCATING" CATHETER

Background: Peritoneal dialysis (PD) catheter displacement is a major cause of dysfunction. Various catheter forms have been designed to improve outcome. One of them is based on the classical Tenckhoff catheter, but includes a small tungsten cylinder at the distal end to optimize location and to prevent dislocations. Methods: In this retrospective study, we analyzed the functionality and complication profile of the self-locating catheter implanted at our center from November 2005 to September 2008 in our PD program. Results: Data from 27 self-locating catheters implanted in 25 patients (12 women) were obtained. Patients were followed for up to 30 months (median observation time: 13 months), resulting in a cumulative study period of 357 PD months. A total of 22 complications were identified, including 1 episode of peritonitis per 52 patient-months, 1 tunnel infection, and 1 exit-site infection. The "functional catheter failure incidence rate" was approximately 0.01 catheters per month on PD (or approximately 1 catheter loss per 100 PD months). The catheter survival was 93% at 1 year. Conclusions: The "self-locating" PD catheter demonstrates low rates of catheter migration and dislocations, and good catheter survival.