Prevalence of Intradialytic Muscle Cramps and Quality of Life in Haemodialysis Patients

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to find out prevalence of intradialytic muscle cramps and quality of life in hemodialysis patients. Study design and settings: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in three different hospitals in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Methodology: Following ethical approval, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 361 patients undergoing hemodialysis through Convenience Sampling Technique. A self-structured questionnaire was used for demographic data and clinical characteristics. Numeric pain rating scale (NPRS) was used to assess severity of muscle cramps and WHOQOL- BREF was used to assess quality of life in hemodialysis patients. Result: During hemodialysis, 78% participants experienced muscle cramps, the mean severity of cramps during hemodialysis was noted to be 7.08±1.94. The most of participants i.e. 45% reported muscle cramps in leg region. The QOL of patients undergoing hemodialysis was low in physical (59.95±19.19), psychological (58.60±17.04), and environmental (33.06±10.51) domains while good in the social domain (83.26±23.75) of WHOQOL- BREF questionnaire Conclusion: The current study's findings showed that muscle cramps in patients undergoing hemodialysis is common. The most reported muscle cramps region were legs. Patients undergoing hemodialysis have a low quality of life except social domain.