Increased peritoneal permeability in patients with peritonitis undergoing continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis.

The distribution of cefuroxime (250 mg) was studied in patients with renal failure undergoing continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). 10 uninfected patients received the drug intravenously and intraperitoneally, while 9 patients with peritonitis were randomly allocated to intravenous or intraperitoneal administration. Samples were taken over the first 6 hour dialysis period. In the infected patients, more drug (p less than 0.01) crossed into the peritoneal cavity following intravenous injection and reached the systemic circulation following intraperitoneal administration than in the uninfected group. This increased permeability of the peritoneal membrane during infection may result in unexpected systemic toxicity in patients treated with intraperitoneal antibiotics.