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Abstract
RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVE: The lived experience of children with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is poorly characterized. We examined the associations between patient-reported outcomes (PROs) measuring children's fatigue, sleep health, psychological distress, family relationships, and global health with clinical outcomes over time in children with CKD and investigated how PROs of children with CKD compare with those of other children.
STUDY DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.
SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: 212 children 8-21 years-old with CKD and their parents recruited from 16 nephrology programs across North America.
PREDICTORS: CKD stage, disease etiology, sociodemographic and clinical variables.
OUTCOMES: PROs over 2 years.
ANALYTICAL APPROACH: We compared PROs in the CKD sample with a nationally representative general pediatric population. Change of PROs over time and association of sociodemographic and clinical variables with PROs were assessed using multivariable regression models.
RESULTS: 84% parents and 77% children completed PROs at all time points. Baseline PRO scores for children with CKD revealed higher burden of fatigue, sleep-related impairment, psychological distress, impaired global health, and poorer family relationships compared with the general pediatric population, with median score differences ≥ one standard deviation for fatigue and global health. Baseline PRO scores did not differ by CKD stage or glomerular vs. non-glomerular etiology. Over two years, PROs were stable with < 1-point annual change on average on each measure and intraclass correlation coefficients ranging 0.53 to 0.79, indicating high stability. Hospitalization and parent-reported sleep problems were associated with worse fatigue, psychological health and global health scores (all p<0.04).
LIMITATIONS: Unable to assess responsiveness to change with dialysis or transplant.
CONCLUSIONS: Children with CKD experience high, yet stable burden of impairment across numerous PRO measures, especially fatigue and global health, independent of disease severity. These findings underscore the importance of assessing PRO, including fatigue and sleep measures, in this vulnerable population.