Factors Associated With Fatigue in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis

Background and objective Fatigue is frequently experienced by patients undergoing hemodialysis and it has a negative effect on their quality of life. The aim of this study was to investigate the factors associated with fatigue in patients undergoing hemodialysis. Methods In this quantitative cross-sectional study, 100 patients on hemodialysis participated. Fatigue was evaluated via the Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS). Participants also completed a questionnaire about demographics and clinical characteristics. The Kruskal-Wallis test, the Mann-Whitney U test, and Spearman's rho criterion were used to assess the association between fatigue score and patient characteristics. Multiple linear regression was performed to assess the effect of the characteristics on patients' fatigue. Results Statistically significant high levels of physical or mental fatigue were found in older patients (p=0.001 and p=0.001), divorced/widowed patients (p=0.001 and p=0.014), those who had children (p=0.019), those who had primary education (p=0.015), those who were not informed about their health problems (p=0.003 and p=0.006), those who had comorbid diseases (p=0.001 and p=0.001), those who believed that regular information did not help to reduce stress (p=0.005 and p=0.004), patients who had insomnia (p=0.001 and p=0.001), patients who felt tired after hemodialysis (p=0.001 and p=0.001), those who thought they had a change in body image (p=0.001 and p=0.001), those who often felt stiffness (p=0.001 and p=0.001), those who sometimes felt nausea (p=0.015 and p=0.038), and those who had limitations in the clothes they could wear (p=0.001 and p=0.001). Conclusions The findings of this study showed that physical or mental fatigue had a strong association with advanced age, comorbidities, marital status, level of education, inadequate information about the disease, insomnia, and change in body appearance. Hence, renal professionals need to properly educate dialysis patients on the complicated nature of fatigue in order to manage it effectively and improve their physical, cognitive, and social wellbeing.