DIALYSIS GRAFT / FISTUAL MANAGEMENT

You should not eat or drink anything after midnight the night before your Dialysis Graft / Fistula Management.

Tell your doctor if you have had any kidney problems or reactions to x-ray dye or contrast. If so, your doctor may want to prescribe medicine for you to take before your procedure.

Ask your doctor about taking your regular medications prior to your Dialysis Graft / Fistula Management, especially Coumadin. Your doctor may want to stop your Coumadin for a few days prior to your procedure. Generally, your medications may be taken with a little sip of water. Please bring all medications you are currently taking with you on the day of your exam.

If you are a diabetic, consult your doctor about your diabetes medications.

Arrange for someone to drive you home and stay with you until the next day. You will not be able to drive, leave by yourself, or take a cab home without a companion.

Please notify your physician if there is any possibility that you are pregnant.

On the day of your Dialysis Graft / Fistula Management, wear comfortable clothes and shoes, and leave your jewelry and valuables at home if possible.

You’ll check in with our receptionist and be asked to complete some paperwork. Please bring your insurance cards and a list of your medications.

A nurse and the interventional radiologist will talk to you about the procedure in detail. They will answer any questions you have and ask you to sign a consent form.

Then you’ll put on a hospital gown and the nurse will start an IV to give you fluids and medications. You may also need lab or blood work done before the procedure.

Our staff will show your family or companion(s) to our comfortable waiting room for the duration of your appointment.

We’ll take you into our procedure room and perform an x-ray to determine if a blockage or narrowing of your dialysis graft or fistula is present. If so, we’ll shave, clean and drape the area, inject a local anesthetic, and make a very small incision.

If a blockage exists, such as a blood clot, we’ll deploy a catheter and inject a medicine to break up the clot and restore blood flow. This procedure is called catheter-directed thrombolysis.

If we’re not able to break up the clot with medication, we will perform a procedure called a thrombectomy, which is the removal of the clot. To treat narrowing, we’ll use angioplasty and vascular stent placement.

After the procedure is complete, we’ll apply manual pressure to the area for 15-20 minutes or until the bleeding stops. We’ll apply a dressing to the site and take you to the recovery room. We’ll monitor your condition for 2-4 hours until you are ready to be discharged.

The staff will review discharge instructions with you and give you a copy of those instructions to take home.

Your family or companion will then drive you home and stay with you overnight.

The following day, you may resume your normal diet and medication schedule, unless otherwise directed. Ask your physician about exercising or working before you resume your normal routine.

We’ll send a report of your Dialysis Graft / Fistula Management to your primary care physician and his or her office will follow up with results and a forward care plan.