Abstract
BACKGROUND: There is currently no consensus regarding the optimal type of peritoneal dialysis (PD) catheter. Although few studies showed that weighted catheters result in lower complication rates and superior long-term outcomes than non-weighted catheters, there are no studies on the use of laxatives linked to catheter malfunction, a patient-related outcome potentially affecting the quality of life. Thus, we compared the burden of acute and chronic laxative use in a cohort of PD patients having either weighted or non-weighted catheters. METHODS: We performed a single-center, retrospective, observational study in two renal units, comparing acute and chronic laxative therapy related to catheter drainage failure in a cohort of 74 PD patient,s divided by peritoneal dialysis catheter type. In addition, we evaluated the number of patients who experienced minor and major dislocations, catheter-related infection rate, hospitalization for catheter malfunctioning, episodes of catheter repositioning, and dropout from PD. RESULTS: Laxative use was significantly more common among patients in the non-weighted catheter group (acute: 30.3% vs. 9.8%, p = 0.03; chronic: 36.4% vs. 12.2%; p≤0.02). Furthermore, weighted catheters were superior to non-weighted catheters for all the secondary outcomes (dislocations: 12.2% vs. 45.5%; p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Weighted self-locating catheters have lower drainage failure, thus reducing the need and burden of acute and chronic laxative use among PD patients.