Analysis of selected plasma constituents in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis effluent.

Patients maintained on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) lose plasma constituents into the dialysis effluent. We have analyzed 24-hour CAPD effluents for selected components--total protein, a typical glycoprotein (alpha 1-acid glycoprotein), a typical lipoprotein (high density lipoprotein), and glycosaminoglycans. Our findings suggest that the plasma constituents found in CAPD effluent are similar to those found in urine from nephrotic patients. The loss of one or more of these plasma constituents into the dialysis solution may be linked to the hypertriglyceridemia observed in these patients.