Quality of Life of Patients with End-stage Renal Disease Undergoing Hemodialysis in Morocco: Cross-sectional Study

Background: End-stage chronic renal disease and its long-term treatment by hemodialysis (HD) affect several aspects of life. This is a cross-sectional, descriptive, and analytical study of 80 patients undergoing chronic HD at the only public sector HD center in the Meknes prefecture of Morocco. This study’s objectives are to evaluate the quality of life (QOL) of patients receiving chronic HD and to determine the factors associated with these patients’ decreased QOL. Subjects and Methods: To achieve the aims of this study, the short form of the Kidney disease quality of life short form (KDQOL-SF1,3), translated and validated in the Moroccan context, was the data collection instrument utilized to gauge these patients’ QOL. Results: The overall mean KDQOL-SF™ score was 39.31 (standard deviation [SD] 7.56). The kidney disease component, mental component, and physical component scores were 47.84 (SD 11), 33.91 (SD 10.22), and 36.19 (SD 8.30), respectively. Scores considered satisfactory were in favor of social support. Similarly, this study revealed, using the Student’s t -test, that there was no significant difference in the means between the subgroups in terms of age, sex, marital status, and duration of HD treatment, while it revealed a significant correlation, using the Pearson’s test, between kidney disease component and the two physical health and mental health components. Conclusions: This study revealed that the QOL of chronic HD patients is impaired. It highlighted that an action on the effects of kidney disease could improve the physical and mental health and, consequently, the QOL of HD patients.