Stages of change and fluid intake in dialysis patients

Nutrition professionals constantly strive to improve adherence to dietary recommendations in hemodialysis patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a 12-week intervention based on stages of change to decrease fluid gain in dialysis patients. Readiness to change, knowledge of appropriate weight gain, and mean weight gains were obtained from patients in five intervention (n = 216) and five control (n = 100) dialysis units. Intervention had more participants in the maintenance and precontemplation stages at the end of the intervention (P = 0.001) compared to the control group. Knowledge scores significantly increased in the intervention group (P < 0.001) during the course of the intervention. However, fluid gains did not decrease in either group. Although this intervention did not produce behavior change, the results can aid other educators in planning intervention programs for renal failure and other chronic diseases. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.