Measurement of hydrostatic intraperitoneal pressure: a useful tool for the improvement of dialysis dose prescription.

The prescription of peritoneal dialysis should be individualized based on parameters of tolerance and adequacy. Determination of the intraperitoneal fill volume is essential for optimal patient care. Fill volume enhancement is a factor of exchange surface area recruitment: the wetted, contact peritoneal dialysis membrane. Nevertheless, fill volume enhancement can also lead to patient discomfort, with the potential risk of too high an intraperitoneal pressure (hernia, gastro-esophageal reflux). The perception of the individual patient is also a subjective parameter of fill volume tolerance assessment. In contrast, measurement of the hydrostatic intraperitoneal pressure (IPP, cmH(2)O) allows an objective approach to fill volume tolerance. From our clinical experience of more than 10 years of IPP measurements in child care, we can give a recommendation for normal values in children: less than 18 cm of water, usually between 5 and 15 cm, correlated to the intraperitoneal fill volume (naturally), but individually taking into account age, gender, "accustomization" and overall body mass index.