Displacement of the inferior vena cava as a factor limiting catheter performance in long-term hemodialysis patients.

We report a case of a lady affected by autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease who had been on hemodialyis for 24 years. She has exhausted all options for arterious-venous fistula. The presence of an acquired anatomical abnormality was an obstacle in order to get appropriate blood flow from standard tunnelled femoral catheters. The enlarged right kidney was pushing the inferior vena cava to the left side of the abdomen, and the abnormality was demonstrated by phlebography. Only after placing a cuffed catheter 53 cm long in her left femoral vein we could dialyze efficiently. Venography is mandatory before placing a cuffed catheter especially in uremic patients with long history of access failure, because it saves costs.