DIALYSIS SYMPTOMS AND ANXIETY, Hemodialysis
Conditions
Keywords
hemodialysis, dialysis, symptoms, clinician-perceived symptoms, PROM
Brief summary
In 2025, Guerraoui et al. published the Concordance Study in Clinical Kidney Journal, a large multicenter cross-sectional study embedded within the French REIN registry. This study compared symptoms reported by hemodialysis patients using the Dialysis Symptom Index (DSI) with clinician-perceived symptoms, revealing a high symptom burden and marked patient-clinician discordance \[3\]. The present work is a secondary analysis of the Concordance Study dataset. Building on the original findings, this analysis aims to deepen understanding of symptom organization and determinants in hemodialysis using multivariate and correlation-based approaches. Specifically, our objectives were : 1. to identify and characterize symptom clusters using tetrachoric correlations and hierarchical clustering; 2. to examine associations between symptoms (and clusters) and comorbidity burden, while assessing potential sex-specific patterns in symptom expression. Through this secondary analysis, we aim to clarify the internal architecture of symptom co-occurrence, identify key demographic drivers such as sex, and generate evidence supporting cluster-informed, individualized approaches to symptom assessment and management in routine nephrology care.
Interventions
OTHERobservational cross sectional study
no intervention : observational
Sponsors
Calydial
Study design
Observational model
CASE_ONLY
Time perspective
PROSPECTIVE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* undergoing maintenance hemodialysis * ≥18 years * dialysis vintage ≥3 months
Exclusion criteria
* patients with cognitive impairment (which was assessed with the presence of either clinical judgement or formal diagnosis) * patients who did not have the ability to express consent or refused to participant in the study * patients who could not read or understand French well enough to complete the questionnaire.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| identify and characterize symptom clusters | one day enrollment | identify and characterize symptom clusters using tetrachoric correlations and hierarchical clustering |
| examine associations between symptoms (and clusters) and comorbidity burden | one day enrollment | examine associations between symptoms (and clusters) and comorbidity burden, while assessing potential sex-specific patterns in symptom expression |
Countries
France
Outcome results
None listed