Dermatological and general quality of life in patients with uremic pruritus receiving hemodialysis

This study was conducted in a descriptive and cross-sectional type in order to determine the dermatological and general quality of life of patients with uremic pruritus receiving hemodialysis (HD) treatment. The population of the study consisted of 224 patients who had undergone hemodialysis between January 30 and November 30, 2020 in two different centers, and 200 patients who met the inclusion criteria and agreed to participate in the study. Patient information form, 5-D-Itching Score, Dermatological Quality Of Life Index (DLQI) and Kidney Disease Quality Of Life Form (KDQOL-36) were used to collect the data of the study. A written permission and ethics committee approval were obtained from the institutions. Chi-square, t-test, anova test and pearson correlation analysis were used in the evaluation of the data. Average total score of HD patients was 13.05±4.29 in 5-D itching scale. General score of KDQOL-36 scale was 59.36±12.27 and the patients with uremic pruritus; kidney disease quality of life was found to be moderate. The average score of DLQI patients with itching was 11.57±4.74, and it was found that itching "highly" affected the dermatological life quality 60,6% of the patients. It was found that there was a moderate negative correlation (r=-0.429, p=<0.001) between 5D itching total average score and KDQOL-36 overall scale, and a moderate positive correlation in DLQI total average score (r=0.425, p=<0.001). As a result, it is determined that more than half of the patients treated with HD in the study have uremic pruritus of moderate severity. It has been found that there is a relationship between the level of itching and the quality of life, and as the severity of itching increases, the quality of the patients' life with kidney disease decreases and their dermatological quality of life is adversely affected accordingly. Therefore, timely treatment, nursing and counseling are recommended to monitor level of itching, dermatological and general quality of life to improve the life quality in HD patients. Key Words: Chronic Kidney Disease, Uremic Pruritus, Quality Of Life, Nursing