Symptom Management in Patients with Stage 5 CKD Opting for Conservative Management

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) stages 3-5 now affects 8.5% of adults in the United Kingdom; with 4% of patients expected to reach stage 5 CKD. Increasing numbers of older patients are contributing to the growth of demand of kidney services. With the exception of transplantation, dialysis has been the main form of renal replacement therapy (RRT) for advanced CKD. This elderly population is usually too frail and has many other co-existing medical complaints or co morbidities to undergo transplantation. Dialysis is an invasive treatment, and some frail elderly patients can experience many dialysis related symptoms. An alternative option for these patients is to choose conservative management (CM) of their stage 5 CKD. These patients often have complex supportive and palliative care needs. The frequency, severity and distress caused by symptoms related to stage 5 CKD are often under recognized and under treated. There is a need for early identification and management of symptoms as they present in patients with stage 5 CKD being managed conservatively. Symptom assessment should be focused on anticipating, identifying and alleviating any symptoms. This needs to be incorporated into the regular practice of those managing CM patients.