In our latest weekly feature, we explore the issues that face kidney dialysis patients and the vascular surgeons who place and maintain the vascular access for dialysis. As Mint Medical Director Dr. John Bry notes, the failure of a fistula or access graft means having to place a new one somewhere else on the body. Some access sites, such as those in the legs, can pose greater risk of infection, and an increasing number of dialysis patients are ending up in the hospital with infections. Vascular surgeons depend on well-trained sonographers to visualize the access area well to give the surgeon key information about placement and blood flow, Dr. Bry says.