Peritoneal dialysis nurses should be aware of the fact that they can reduce their patients' uncertainty and stress by helping them to maintain hope and to view their health status positively.

The palliative approach offers significant and practical care throughout the treatment of the dialysis patient until death. Varied aspects of quality of life for patients can be improved. It is possible to relieve symptoms such as sleep disorders, pain, constipation and pruritus, which, according to the present survey, are common symptoms. The treatment of dying dialysis patients or the possibility and legitimization of discontinuing treatment are complex, controversial issues with ethical and legal implications. But these issues have not yet been adequately dealt with by the nephrological community. The nurses who encounter patients daily, who constantly deal with great suffering and who lack tools to help, can lead the practice in this field within the framework of inter-disciplinary team work. In light of the obvious need for progress in this area, appropriate training courses should be considered. The implementation of the palliative approach in dialysis units could be a challenge for all of us in the coming years.

out of the question to perform any randomized studies to evaluate the effect of declining RRF on endothelial function.In conclusion, this study showed that the decline in RRF in incident CAPD patients is associated with worsened endothelial dysfunction, while a stable RRF seems not to affect endothelial function significantly. This study not only provided new understanding of the association between RRF and cardiovascular disease in dialysis patients, but also highlighted the justification of protecting RRF in this population.

Peritonitis and catheter infections remain a major complication of peritoneal dialysis, accounting for much of the morbidity associated with the technique. The most common source of infection is contamination with predominantly Gram positive skin flora, Staphylococcus (S) epidermidis and S. aureus. The aims of this study were, (a) to determine the incidence of S. aureus and S. epidermidis infections in the unit, (b) to examine whether treatment of S. aureus carriers may reduce the incidence of exit site infection and (c) to examine whether improving patient education may reduce S. epidermidis peritonitis rate.