Abstract
Introduction. Little is known about physical symptoms in peritoneal dialysis (PD) Patients. This study aims to determine the prevalence of symptoms (general and abdominal) in PD patients. Methods. A cross-sectional study, with subsequent followup, using an author-designed 21 symptoms questionnaire (15 nonabdominal and 6 abdominal). Each symptom was assessed on a scale 0-3 for severity (none-severe) and frequency (never-every day). Results. We studied 41 patients, mean age 60 ± 15 years, 56% male, 19.5% diabetics, and 51.5% on APD. Mean number of symptoms was 9.5 ± 3.9 and total symptoms score was 28.5 ± 12 with abdominal scores of 6.4 ± 4.8. Most frequent symptoms were lack of energy, itching, cramps, poor sleep, and loss of appetite. A second evaluation in 20 patients disclosed no statistical difference between the first and second assessments, or between subgroups. Cramps were the only symptoms which decreased over time (P = 0.120). Lack of energy did not correlate with haemoglobin, neither did itching with phosphate level. Conclusions. Physical symptoms are frequent and troublesome; they relate to advanced kidney disease and not specifically to PD. Symptoms remain stable over time and do not appear to relate to dialysis parameter markers.