Pruritus Is Common Among Hemodialysis Patients and Can Lead to Poor Outcomes

Moderate to extreme pruritus, or itching, was experienced by 44% of 6480 hemodialysis patients in the Japanese Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study. Many patient characteristics were associated with pruritus, but this did not explain the large differences in pruritus among facilities (20% to 70%). Patients with moderate to extreme pruritus were more likely to feel drained, have poor sleep quality, and have quality of life (mental and physical) composite scores that were lower than patients with no/mild pruritus. Pruritus in patients undergoing dialysis was associated with a 23% higher risk of premature mortality, according to the Hemodialysis International study.