The effects of cool dialysate on pruritus status during hemodialysis of patients with chronic renal failure : a controlled randomized clinical trial

Abstract EN

Background: Pruritus during dialysis is a common complaint among patients undergoing hemodialysis.

Despite progress in medical science and technology in the field of hemodialysis, there is still no cure for pruritus.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of cool dialysate on the severity of pruritus during hemodialysis of patients with chronic renal failure.

Patients and Methods: This study was a two-group, triple-blinded randomized clinical trial, with a parallel design.

It consisted of 60 patients with chronic renal failure who were receiving hemodialysis at hemodialysis centers in Mashhad.

The patients were divided into two equal groups: 30 patients in an intervention group and 30 patients in a control group.

Initially, the patients in both groups underwent dialysis for one week (three sessions) with a standard dialysis solution (temperature of 37 °C).

In the next phase, the control group received the standard dialysis solution, whereas the intervention group received a cool dialysis solution (35.5°C) for one week (three sessions).

The severity of pruritus was recorded using a visual analogue scale (VAS), with itching scored from 0 - 10 on an hourly basis during the dialysis sessions.

Results: Before the intervention, there was no significant between-group difference in the severity of pruritus (P < 0.05).

After the intervention, the severity of pruritus was significantly reduced (reduction of 3 points, itching score range of 0 - 10) (P < 0.0001).

Conclusions: Dialysis with cool dialysate is a simple and cheap nondrug method, which was readily accepted by the patients.

This method could significantly reduce the severity of pruritus in patients during dialysis.