Quantifying Fatigue in Chronic Kidney Disease: Its Correlation with Disease Severity and Biochemical Parameters
Keywords:
Chronic Kidney Disease, Fatigue, Disease Severity, eGFR, Haemoglobin, Serum Creatinine, NephrologyAbstract
Background: Chronic Kidney Disease is a chronic health condition with physical and psychological impacts. This study determined the level of fatigue in patients with CKD and its association with the severity of the disease and some clinical parameters. Methods: A cross-sectional study was designed and performed on 80 patients with CKD who were attending the nephrology clinics and dialysis units. Structured questionnaires and a review of medical records were used to gather demographic and clinical information. Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) was used for assessing fatigue. The clinical parameters such as estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), serum creatinine, haemoglobin level, and duration of CKD were noted. The descriptive and inferential statistics were applied via SPSS version 26.0. Results: Participants had moderate to high fatigue reflected in a mean fatigue severity score of 42.8 ± 10.5. 47.5% of patients reported moderate fatigue and 35.0% severe fatigue. There was a significant increase in fatigue severity from the CKD 2 stage (31.4 ± 7.2) to the CKD 5 stage (53.3 ± 7.6) (p < 0.001). Significant positive correlations were observed between fatigue and age (r = 0.31, p = 0.005), disease duration (r = 0.38, p < 0.001), and serum creatinine levels (r = 0.59, p < 0.001). Significant negative correlations were found between fatigue and haemoglobin (r = −0.54, p < 0.001) as well as eGFR (r = −0.62, p < 0.001). Reduced eGFR (β = −0.41, p < 0.001), low haemoglobin (β = −0.33, p = 0.002) and high serum creatinine (β = 0.29, p = 0.006) were significant factors associated with fatigue severity in multiple regression analysis. Conclusions: Fatigue is a very common symptom in patients with chronic kidney disease, and gets worse as the disease advances. Fatigue severity was linked to decreased kidney function and anemia.
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