Presentation (CTI)

OBJECTIVES: Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is one of the leading causes of global mortality and morbidity. Among the treatment modalities, dialysis significantly affects patients’ physical, psychological, and social well-being and often degrades health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Despite being a critical public health concern, evidence on this issue remains limited in developing countries such as Bangladesh. This study aimed to assess the HRQoL of dialysis patients and identify the factors associated with HRQoL outcomes in Bangladesh.
METHODS: A hospital based cross-sectional survey was conducted on dialysis patients authorized by registered physicians in various health facilities in Bangladesh. HRQoL was measured using EQ-5D-5L and EQ-VAS. A two-part regression model was used to explore factors influencing the HRQoL scores. In the first part of the model, we used logit model to estimate the likelihood of reporting positive health (EQ-5D score >0) and a truncated OLS regression model was employed in the second part of the model to predict the positive EQ-5D-5L scores.
RESULTS: Overall, the mean EQ-5D-5L and EQ-VAS scores were 0.30 (SD 0.45) and 0.48 (SD 0.22), respectively. Higher mean scores were observed among younger patients (0.43), males (0.35), those with higher levels of education (0.44), employed patients (0.46), patients receiving the recommended dialysis sessions (0.33) and patients from the wealthiest households (0.44). The two-part regression model identified age, gender, duration of dialysis, receiving less dialysis sessions than recommended and household wealth as significant predictors of HRQoL.
CONCLUSIONS: The health‑related quality of life is poor among Bangladeshi CKD patients undergoing dialysis. These findings underscore the importance of routine HRQoL assessments as a means of identifying patients at risk of adverse outcomes. We also recommend introducing a national health insurance scheme to make dialysis care more affordable and accessible in Bangladesh, thereby enhancing patients’ quality of life, as well as their survival prospects.