Critical Thinking

Inside a

Dialysis
Machine
Done by:

Tan Jiefeng (21)

Nicholas Tay
(22)
Wang Shiyao
(23)
Class 1I1

What is Kidney Failure?

Not able to remove waste and extra
water from the blood or keep body
chemicals in balance.
Needs the help of a Dialysis
machine.

What is Dialysis?
Dialysis is the cleansing of blood
through a special machine.
Dialysis machines help to remove
the waste products from their
blood.

How does a Dialysis Machine

work?
Path which blood takes:

What is inside a Dialyzer?

Inside a Dialyzer, there is a semipermeable membrane.

- On one side there is blood.
- On the other side there is a special
solution called dialysate.

What is inside a Dialyzer?

Dialysate is a solution that pulls
waste from blood.

What is diffusion?

Diffusion is the
movement of substances
from an area of
HIGH CONCENTRATION
to an area of
LOWER
CONCENTRATION.

Semi-permeability
Smaller substances are able to pass
through the semi-permeable membrane
- Because they are small enough.
Bigger substances cannot pass through
the semi-permeable membrane
- Because they are too big.

Question 4a

How do you think

the waste
substances in the
blood such as urea
is removed from
the blood?

Question 4a
They are removed from the blood in the dialyzer.
In the dialyzer, the blood with waste products
will flow past one side of a semi-permeable
membrane.
On the other side of this membrane, there is a
special substance called dialysate, which pulls
waste from blood. The waste such as urea will
pass through the membrane.

Question 4b

Will the red and white

blood cells and platelets
which make up the blood
be removed? Why?

Question 4b
The red and white blood cells and
platelets will not be removed.
- This is because they are too big to
pass through the semi-permeable
membrane in the dialyzer and thus
will return to the blood compartment.

Question 4c
Diffusible substances needed by
the body such as sugars, amino
acids and certain amounts of salts
can go through the membrane.
What can be done to make sure
that these substances are not
removed by dialysis?

Question 4c
To make sure that these substances are not removed,
the concentration of these substances on the other side
of the membrane has to be the same.
- This is because diffusion is substances moving from a
higher concentration to a lower concentration,
- If the concentration on both sides of the membrane is
the same, thenthe substanceswill not move.

Question 4d

Water from the blood can

also diffuse through the
membrane. Why is it not
removed by dialysis?

Question 4d
Similarly, if the concentration of
water on the other side of the
membrane is the same as that of
blood, then there will be no
diffusion,and nomovement of
water.

Concepts

Diffusion
Semipermeability

Bibliography

images.google.com
http://dialysis-patient-care.blogspot.com/
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-amino-acids.htm
http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pubs/hemodialysisdose/
http://www.answers.com/topic/how-does-kidney-dialysis-removewaste-products-from-the-body
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_removed_by_dialysis
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Biology-664/Dialysis.htm
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Molecular-Biology-1353/Dialysis.htm

Thank you!