Dialysis symptom index burden and symptom clusters in a prospective cohort of dialysis patients

Background Dialysis patients experience a high symptom burden, which may adversely impact their quality of life. Whereas other specialties emphasize routine symptom assessment, symptom burden is not well-characterized in dialysis patients. We sought to examine the prevalence and severity of unpleasant symptoms in a prospective hemodialysis cohort. Methods Among 122 hemodialysis patients from the prospective Malnutrition, Diet, and Racial Disparities in Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) study, CKD-associated symptoms were ascertained by the Dialysis Symptom Index, a validated survey assessing symptom burden/severity (with higher scores indicating greater symptom severity), over 6/2020-10/2020. We examined the presence of (1) individual symptoms and symptom severity scores, and (2) symptom clusters (defined as >= 2 related concurrent symptoms), as well as correlations with clinical characteristics. Results Symptom severity scores were higher among non-Hispanic White and Hispanic patients, whereas scores were lower in Black and Asian/Pacific Islander patients. In the overall cohort, the most common individual symptoms included feeling tired/lack of energy (71.3%), dry skin (61.5%), trouble falling asleep (44.3%), muscle cramps (42.6%), and itching (42.6%), with similar patterns observed across racial/ethnic groups. The most prevalent symptom clusters included feeling tired/lack of energy + trouble falling asleep (37.7%); trouble falling asleep + trouble staying asleep (34.4%); and feeling tired/lack of energy + trouble staying asleep (32.0%). Lower hemoglobin, iron stores, and dialysis adequacy correlated with higher individual and overall symptom severity scores. Conclusion We observed a high prevalence of unpleasant symptoms and symptom clusters in a diverse hemodialysis cohort. Further studies are needed to identify targeted therapies that ameliorate symptom burden in CKD. [GRAPHICS] .

Automated summary

This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and severity of unpleasant symptoms in hemodialysis patients. The study found that fatigue, dry skin, trouble falling asleep, muscle cramps, and itching were common symptoms in dialysis patients, with variations in severity among different racial groups. Lower hemoglobin, iron stores, and dialysis adequacy were associated with higher symptom severity.