Dehydr8 and deactiv8
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Dehydr8 and deactiv8: The impact of a typical 8 day course of ‘target weight’ driven haemodialysis on the hydration status, physical and cognitive function, physical activity and quality of life of adults with end-stage renal disease.
IRAS ID
226295
Contact name
Zoe Saynor
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 3 months, 0 days
Research summary
Managing fluid status is a complex but fundamental part of the clinical care of people receiving haemodialysis (HD). Day-to-day fluid management is usually based on the concept of ‘target weight’ - the weight used to determine how much fluid should be removed during each dialysis session. However, the focus of this approach is usually on avoiding fluid overload (hypervolaemia), since this is associated with a higher incidence of cardiovascular and pulmonary events, in addition to increased morbidity and mortality. As a consequence, a significant proportion of people on maintenance HD spend a great deal of time in a dehydrated state. Although dehydration is known to be associated with a number of unwanted consequences (e.g. headaches, severe fatigue, impaired cognitive and physiological function), there has been little research focusing on the impact dehydration has on the physical and psychosocial well-being of this patient group. Considering the short life expectancy of individuals with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) reliant on maintenance HD, particularly those who are unable to receive a renal transplant, we should be focused on improving their function and quality of life (QoL). Key issues that need addressing prior to developing interventions in this cohort are 1) investigating the best and alternative measures to assess hydration status and 2) documenting the biopsychosocial impact of typical target weight driven HD in a well-designed study. To date, no study has compared current clinical measures (e.g. body mass and bioimpedance analysis) with other markers such as plasma and saliva osmolality, saliva flow rate and sit-to-stand heart rate. Furthermore, no study has assessed the direct relationships between hydration status and cognitive and physiological function, physical (in)activity and QoL in patients with ESRD.
REC name
South Central - Hampshire A Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/SC/0234
Date of REC Opinion
30 Jun 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion