Dialysis access maintenance

Dialysis access is an entranceway into your bloodstream that lies completely beneath your skin and is easy to use. The access is usually in your arm and allows blood to be removed and returned quickly, efficiently, and safely during dialysis.

Creating the access portal is a minor surgical procedure. There are two types of portals placed completely under the skin:

• Fistula: Which is constructed by the physician by joining an artery and a vein.
• Graft: Which is a man-made tube, consisting of plastic or other material, that the physician inserts under the skin to connect an artery to a vein.