PERITONEAL-DIALYSIS ACCESS - PROSPECTIVE RANDOMIZED COMPARISON OF SINGLE-CUFF AND DOUBLE-CUFF STRAIGHT TENCKHOFF CATHETERS

Background. A prerequisite to the technical success of chronic periton eal dialysis is a functioning peritoneal catheter. The option of using Tenckhoff catheters with single or double Dacron cuffs has been avail able for almost 3 decades, but still there is no consensus as to which is the preferable type. Method. Sixty consecutive patients requiring a catheter for CAPD were randomized to receive either a straight deep single-cuff Tenckhoff catheter or a double-cuff Tenckhoff catheter. Th e catheters were surgically inserted. Results. There were no early fai lures. Two subcutaneous cuff extrusions were treated with shaving of t he cuff. In the long term, eight patients in both groups required tran sfer to haemodialysis (5 and 3 prolonged peritonitis, 1 and 0 exit-sit e infection, 2 and 5 unable to cope or inadequacy of dialysis). There was no significant difference in the probability of developing first e pisode of peritonitis or exit site infection between the groups. Overa ll probability of catheter survival was 95.5 and 96.7% at 1 year, 82.7 and 79.9% at 2 in the two groups respectively. Conclusions. There was no significant difference between catheters with single or double cuf fs with respect to catheter survival, episodes of peritonitis and exit -site infections.