Abstract
Background and Aims
Renal supportive care (RSC) is a novel multidisciplinary patient-centred model of care that focuses on symptom management and quality of life improvement in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), including conservative care. Despite an increased interest in embedding RSC into routine nephrology practice, there is limited literature on the effects of symptom improvement in patients attending RSC services. We aimed to examine symptom improvement and symptom progression in patients receiving renal supportive care.
Method
Using Integrated Palliative care Outcome Scale Renal (IPOS-renal) scores collected during routine RSC clinics, we analysed the changes in individual IPOS-renal items and summative scores for symptoms associated with chronic kidney disease, stratified by time from the initial clinic visit (0-6 months, 6-12 months, and >12 months), in all patients attending our RSC service in a tertiary hospital between November 2015 and July 2019.
Results
Of 245 patients referred to our RSC service, 61 patients completed two or more IPOS-renal surveys. At initial visit, majority of the patients were reviewed at hospital outpatient clinic (n=42, 71%), followed by dialysis (n=8, 13%), home visit (n=6, 10%), and inpatient ward (n=4, 7%). The median (IQR) eGFR was 13 (7-16) ml/min/1.73m2 and median Karnofsky score was 70 (60-80). Weakness (n=59, 97%) and poor mobility (n=52, 85%) were the most common initial complaints. For all reported symptoms, dyspnea improved the most for all three time periods (summative IPOS score changes of 28, 17, and 8 points for 0-6, 6-12, >12 months, respectively). Poor mobility was the only symptom that continued to deteriorate between 0-6 months despite attending renal supportive care (without a physiotherapist). For asymptomatic patients, more than half of the symptoms remained quiescent after attending RSC service for more than 12 months. Among newly developed symptoms, nausea, dyspnea, and drowsiness were most common between 0-6 months. In contrast, pruritus, dry mouth, and constipation were the most common complaints after 12 months.
Conclusion
RSC interventions provided symptom improvement in patients with advanced CKD and ESKD, but poor mobility remained a concern in this population. Incorporating physiotherapy to RSC may further improve symptom management.
Supportive Care: Comprehensive Conservative Care in End-Stage Kidney Disease