Experience with placing peritoneal dialysis catheters in the iliac fossa in cases of frozen pelvis.

ABSTRACT

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is a modality frequently preferred by patients for the management of their end-stage kidney disease; however, a major factor in its success is PD catheter placement and subsequent function. Optimal placement of PD catheters is generally accepted to be in the true pelvis, for this reason, many patients who are found to have a pelvic cavity obliterated by adhesions are often denied the opportunity to do PD. We report on four cases of an alternative advanced laparoscopic technique used in patients with inaccessible pelvic cavities, with three catheter placements in the intraperitoneal left iliac fossa/paracolic gutter and one case in the right paracolic gutter with subsequent good outcomes. This report suggests that a 'frozen pelvis' is not a contraindication to successful PD, with alternative catheter tip placement in the iliac fossa.