Pregnancy in a woman undergoing peritoneal dialysis: Management and dialysis options

Abstract

Pregnancy in patients with end-stage renal disease on maintenance dialysis is uncommon, with annual incidences reported at 0.3 - 2.7%. Peritoneal dialysis usage in pregnancy has been less reported than hemodialysis, although outcomes are similar. Nowadays, there are insufficient data to establish a generalizable dialysis strategy in pregnant women with end-stage renal disease. As such, decisions should be individualized, depending on clinical factors, residual renal function, and, whenever possible, choice of the patient. We report the case of a 22-year-old patient receiving peritoneal dialysis who delivered a full-term, normal weight, healthy baby with increased dialysis dose achieved by supplementary hemodialysis during pregnancy, thus enabling peritoneal dialysis to be continued until the third trimester and minimizing hemodialysis requirements.