Effect of Aging in the Perception of Health-Related Quality of Life in End-Stage Renal Disease Patients under Online-Hemodiafiltration

Quality of Life and Hemodynamic Effects of Switching From Hemodialysis to Hemodiafiltration: A Canadian Controlled Cohort Study

Background:

Recent randomized clinical trials have demonstrated beneficial effects of hemodiafiltration (HDF) compared with hemodialysis (HD) on mortality and hemodynamic stability. Data on quality of life in HDF compared with HD is limited.

Objective:

This study aimed to determine whether patients receiving HD experience improvements in quality of life, hemodynamic and laboratory parameters after switching to HDF.

Design:

Observational controlled cohort study.

Setting & Patients:

Adult patients receiving maintenance dialysis were followed for 3 months both before and after transfer to a new unit, where they received HDF. Prior to transfer, control patients were already treated by HDF.

Methods:

Quality of life at baseline and follow-up was measured using the validated minutes to recovery (MR) question. Dialysis data were collected for 3 consecutive sessions monthly; laboratory values were collected monthly. Wilcoxon signed rank test and repeated measures analysis of covariance were used to evaluate pre/post transfer changes and quantile regression to identify predictors of change in recovery time.

Results:

Of 227 patients, 82 died, were transplanted, were hospitalized or did not transfer, leaving 123 subjects and 22 controls for analysis. MR did not improve with switching to HDF, although patients with MR > 60 min before transfer experienced a significant decrease in their MR, compared with controls. There was no improvement in intradialytic hypotension with HDF. There were no differences in laboratory values before vs after switch.

Limitations:

Nonrandomized single-center study, including only small numbers of patients and covering a short follow-up period; hemodynamic values only evaluated over 1 week per month; residual kidney function not recorded.

Conclusions:

In this Canadian experience of HDF, patients remained stable with respect to several laboratory and dialysis related parameters. Switch to HDF was associated with substantially reduced recovery time in patients with MR > 60 minutes at baseline.

Discussions during shared decision-making in older adults with advanced renal disease: a scoping review

OBJECTIVES

This review summarises the information available for clinicians counselling older patients with kidney failure about treatment options, focusing on prognosis, quality of life, the lived experiences of treatment and the information needs of older adults.

DESIGN

We followed the Joanna Briggs Institute Methodology for Scoping Reviews. The final report conforms to the PRISMA-ScR guidelines.

DATA SOURCES

PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, TRIP and online repositories (for dissertations, guidelines and recommendations from national renal associations).

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR INCLUSION

Articles in English studying older adults with advanced kidney disease (estimated glomerular filtration rate <30 mL/min/1.73 m²); published between January 2000 and August 2018. Articles not addressing older patients separately or those comparing between dialysis modalities were excluded.

DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS

Two independent reviewers screened articles for inclusion and grouped them by topic as per the objectives above. Quantitative data were presented as tables and charts; qualitative themes were identified and described.

RESULTS

248 articles were included after screening 15 445 initial results. We summarised prognostic scores and compared dialysis and non-dialytic care. We highlighted potentially modifiable factors affecting quality of life. From reports of the lived experiences, we documented the effects of symptoms, of ageing, the feelings of disempowerment and the need for adaptation. Exploration of information needs suggested that patients want to participate in decision-making and need information, in simple terms, about survival and non-survival outcomes.

CONCLUSION

When discussing treatment options, validated prognostic scores are useful. Older patients with multiple comorbidities do not do well with dialysis. The modifiable factors contributing to the low quality of life in this cohort deserve attention. Older patients suffer a high symptom burden and functional deterioration; they have to cope with significant life changes and feelings of disempowerment. They desire greater involvement and more information about illness, symptoms and what to expect with treatment.