How To Do With Itchy Skin In Dialysis Patients

2015-04-21 01:36

Among kidney dysfunction patients, itchy skin is a common and unbearable symptom. Its incidence rate in hemodialysis patients is 60%-90%. With the increase of time in dialysis, itchy skin will become worse and worse. Although itchy skin does not threaten patients’ life directly, it affects patients’ life quality and physical and psychological health as well as patients’ surviving rate.

Reasons for itchy skin include the following aspects:

1. Disorder of electrolyte metabolism

Since kidneys cannot discharge excess phosphorus from the body, phosphorus level in blood will elevate and blood calcium level will decrease, which will stimulate parathyroid hormone secretion, causing secondary hyperparathyroidism. Researches show that secondary hyperparathyroidism can lead to itchy skin. Parathyroid hormone elevation can lead to hypercalcemia, calcinosis cutis and stimulate skin mast cells to release histamine.

Common treatment methods:

Limit phosphorus intake from diet

Take activated vitamin D to supplement calcium

Regulate dialysate to proper calcium concentration and prevent hypercalcemia

Take phosphate binder and reduce intestinal tract absorption to phosphorus

2. Nitrogen metabolites retention

Nitrogen metabolites retention will stimulate skin and shrink sebaceous gland and sweat gland. This will make your skin dry and desquamation. In this condition, itchy skin will present. The increase of nitrogen metabolites is related to inadequacy of dialysis. Due to economic factor, some patients take dialysis twice a week and choose cheap dialyzer. Inadequacy of dialysis will cause retention of nitrogen metabolites and aggravate itchy skin.

Therefore, to guarantee the adequacy of dialysis and alleviate itchy skin, patients are recommended to increase dialysis frequency and choose high quality dialyzer.

3. Anaphylaxis

Chronic Kidney Failure patients tend to suffer from anaphylaxis which can cause elevated histamine concentrations in blood, resulting in skin itch. Patients can use cool and refreshing oil to alleviate itchy skin.

The above are causes and treatments for itchy skin in dialysis patients. You can send an email to pkdtreatment169@gmail.com to get further information.

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