ABSTRACT

Objective: This study was performed to examine the relationship between thirst distress and severity and compliance with fluid control and interdialytic weight gain in patients receiving outpatient hemodialysis treatment.

Methods: This two-center, descriptive and cross-sectional study was completed with 148 patients receiving outpatient hemodialysis treatment. The data were collected by using the “Patient Introduction Form”, the “Thirst Distress Scale (TDS)”, the “Fluid Control Scale in Hemodialysis Patients (FCSHP)”, the “Visual Analog Scale (VAS)”. Interdialytic weight gain (IDWG) was calculated as the difference between the weight before hemodialysis and the weight recorded after the previous session; the mean of sessions over 3 months was recorded. Independent sample t-test, One way-ANOVA test, Mann-Whitney-U, and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to evaluate the data, and Pearson correlation analysis was used to determine the relationship between the scales.

Results: According to the results, the mean TDS score was 21.67±5.02, the mean VAS score was 4.62±1.68, the mean FCHPS total scale score was 44.86±6.80, the mean FCHPS behavior subscale score was 22.14±5.74, the mean FCHPS knowledge subscale score was 12.54±2.79, and the mean FCHPS attitude subscale score was 10.17±2.76. A negative correlation was found between TDS scores and FCHPS total scores, FCHPS subscale knowledge scores and FCHPS subscale attitude scores, and IDWG and FCHPS subscale attitude scores. A positive correlation was also found between the VAS score and IDWG.

Conclusion: Thirst distress was higher than the moderate level in hemodialysis patients, and IDWG increased as thirst severity (VAS score) increased.