Fox 4: At-home kidney dialysis treatment gives patients a chance at normalcy

by Abby Eden

Kidney disease can be devastating for patients and their families. Often times it means families need to make regular hospital visits for dialysis treatments for years, even a lifetime. But a unique program at Children's Mercy allows for pediatric patients to live a more normal life.

Ayesha Dunlap was born with kidney failure, and although she had a transplant, that kidney failed years ago. So every day the 20-year-old needs dialysis.

"I don't like coming to the hospital a lot," she said. Luckily, she no longer has to.

Dunlap and her family live in Lawrence, so it would typically take them an hour each way to get to and from Children's Mercy for dialysis.

"That'd be a lot, and it's like -- I like to do stuff and call my siblings and go to sports games," she said.

So Dunlap has an at-home peritoneal cycler machine that automatically loads summaries of her nightly dialysis treatments into a "cloud," allowing the staff at Children's Mercy to check her levels and treatment -- without Dunlap ever leaving her home.

"It made a huge difference in their quality of life," pediatric nephrologist Bradley Warady said. "In Ayesha's case, she went to school. Now she's working."

See the full story via Fox 4.

Learn more about the services offered by the Division of Pediatric Nephrology at Children's Mercy.