One in five regret starting haemodialysis – especially if a doctor urged them to
Patients must be prompted to think of dialysis as a major life decision, says lead researchers
Haemodialysis patients are much more likely to regret their decision to initiate treatment if they were swayed by doctors or family members, a recent US study suggests.
Researchers examined data from questionnaires completed by 397 adults receiving maintenance dialysis in and around Cleveland, Ohio about their feelings related to treatment.
Overall, one in five (82), reported decisional regret, the research team reported in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
And regret was more than twice as common when patients reported starting dialysis at the urging of doctors and loved ones.
