Hairdryer myth: Peritoneal dialysis care vs. family dispute

A hairdryer does not cure or replace peritoneal dialysis, but its domestic use is associated with skin and catheter care. The family narrative confuses the device's utility with the clinical evolution of their father, who switched to hemodialysis.

Peritoneal dialysis is performed at home and requires meticulous care of the catheter and surrounding skin. A hairdryer can help dry the area after showering, but it is neither a treatment nor a healthcare requirement. The confusion between what helps and what cures lies at the center of this family story.

## What is peritoneal dialysis and why does the hairdryer matter?

Peritoneal dialysis is a technique that filters blood using the peritoneum, the membrane lining the abdomen, as an artificial kidney. The patient connects to a bag of dialysate fluid via a catheter, and the exchange occurs at home, several times a day or overnight with a machine. In Spain, according to the registry of the Sociedad Española de Nefrología (Spanish Society of Nephrology), around **10%** of dialysis patients were on peritoneal dialysis in the latest published data, although figures vary by region.

The catheter is the entry point for infections. Therefore, protocols insist on keeping the area clean and dry. A hairdryer on low heat can help dry the skin after showering, but nephrology services recommend drying with sterile gauze or air-drying, and not directing hot air directly at the catheter. The device is not a medical instrument nor appears in clinical guidelines as necessary equipment.

## Switching to hemodialysis is not caused by a hairdryer

Peritoneal dialysis may stop working for various reasons: repeated catheter infections, membrane failure, abdominal hernia, or the medical team's decision. When this happens, the patient switches to hemodialysis, a treatment carried out in a hospital center or day unit. The Sociedad Española de Nefrología documents that transfer to hemodialysis is one of the three common exits from the technique, along with transplant and death.

Attributing this change to the lack of a hairdryer has no clinical backing. The evolution of a dialysis patient depends on residual renal function, cardiovascular status, and the technique itself. A household appliance does not alter these factors. The person caring for the father, his nurse, knew the protocol and said she would buy another hairdryer at the hardware store. That phrase summarizes the difference between a household utensil and a treatment.

## Disseminated intravascular coagulation and the diagnosis nobody heard

Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is a serious coagulation disorder appearing in severe infections, cancers, or trauma. It is not a consequence of peritoneal dialysis or drying hair with a device. The account mentions that it was said the father had DIC and that no one paid attention. DIC is diagnosed through blood tests and requires urgent hospital care.

The story mixes three distinct things: a household appliance, a dialysis technique, and a hematological disorder. None of the three explains the others. The hairdryer may have had practical importance for the father's daily hygiene, but it was not the cause of his deterioration or his transfer to hemodialysis.

## What was taken from the living room and what cannot be taken

The account also speaks of a move, siblings taking furniture, and a mother who promised to leave the living room but did not. That part is a family dispute over objects, not health. The hairdryer was just one more item among those distributed. The person who gave it was the father's nurse and knew what it was used for, but she also said she would buy another one.

The practical conclusion is simple: if a peritoneal dialysis patient needs a hairdryer to dry carefully, they should buy one and trinc the hospital protocol. No household device replaces a nephrology consultation. For any doubts regarding catheter care or treatment changes, one must speak with the medical team attending to the patient.