Dialysis - Few Facts & Upcoming facilities

Till now, only S.S.K.M. Hospital, N.R.S. Medical College & Hospital and Sambhu Nath Pandit Hospital were the only Government run set ups offering haemo-dialysis.

Now R.G.Kar Medical College & Hospital is coming up with a dialysis unit of its own. It is expected to benefit the large number of patients attending this hospital.

Dialysis - some known / unknown facts

Dialysis is required by the patients of kidney failures. Temporary (usually) failure may occur from severe diarrhoea, vomiting (dehydration) or from snake bite with viper group of snakes.

Viper poisons result in breakage of the red blood cells, which get deposited in the filters of the kidney, resulting in severe impairment of the function. If not treated aggressively for the acute renal (kidney) failure, apart from the treatments for other toxic effects of the poison, it may be fatal.

Dialysis plays a crucial role in saving the lives of these patients, apart from other patients with kidney impairment.

What is Dialysis?

Our kidneys function to filter the blood, and thereby remove the toxic substances through urine.

If the function of the organ is impaired, blood can not be properly filtered, and toxic materials get accumulated in the body.

The toxic materials are mostly nitrogenous substances, which come from protein foods. Therefore, protein intake must be controlled under such circumstances.

Again our body runs perfectly only when a very complex harmony of the electrolytes or salts are maintained. In altered functions of the kidney, this harmony gets disrupted, and may have fatal outcome, commonly due to potassium imbalance. Even fruit juice, or fruits may become poisons.



In dialysis, the blood is artificially filtered.


In haemo-dialysis, the commonest form, the blood is taken out of the body through an access site. It is then passed through the machine, which filters the blood, and the filtered blood is returned back to the patient instantly.

Causes of Kidney Failure

There are several causes, and I have mentioned some of those for "temporary" but life threatening failures.

Irreversible damage may occur from several causes, but high blood pressure & diabetes are the major culprits. So, be careful to control your pressure and sugar levels. Excessive intake of "pain-killer" medicines may be dangerous as well.

What if the Government starts dialysis?

• Lower cost.
• Free "vascular access" (access to blood) , which is costly in private hospitals.
• Easier access and better affordability to larger number of people.
• Presence of highly qualified staff - usually the Govt. pays better and screens better .

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