The effects of death anxiety on diet-fluid restriction non-adherence in hemodialysis patients.

Introduction: The study was performed to examine the effects of death anxiety on diet-fluid restriction non-adherence in hemodialysis patients.

Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional, and correlational study was performed with 118 hemodialysis patients who received treatment in the dialysis unit of a university hospital and a state hospital in Elazığ, eastern Turkey. The study data were obtained with the "Descriptive Data Form", "Death Anxiety Scale", and "Dietary and Fluid Restriction Non-Adherence Scale".

Findings: The average Death Anxiety Scale total score of the patients was 10.00 ± 4.75. The "Duration of non-adherence with diet" mean score was 1.66 ± 1.70, "Degree of non-adherence with diet" mean score was 1.24 ± 1.19, "Duration of non-adherence with fluid restriction" mean score was 1.61 ± 1.71, and "Degree of non-adherence with fluid restriction" mean score was 1.16 ± 1.13. The independent variable Death Anxiety Scale significantly and negatively affected the dependent variable "Duration of non-adherence with diet", "Degree of non-adherence with diet", "Duration of non-adherence with fluid restriction", and "Degree of non-adherence with fluid restriction".

Discussion: Hemodialysis patients face serious death anxiety, their degree of non-adherence with diet-fluid restriction was low as death anxiety scores increased, and the degree of non-adherence with diet-fluid restriction decreased.