Dietary and fluid adherence in Iranian hemodialysis patients.

Adherence to fluid restrictions and dietary and medication guidelines is important for adequate management of hemodialysis (HD) patients. This study aimed at assessing the factors suggestive of adherence in uremic patients on HD. Two hundred HD patients were recruited by census method. Data on blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum potassium and phosphate levels, and interdialytic weight gain (IWG) were collected from medical records and analyzed. Most of the patients (56%) did not adhere to fluid restrictions. Nonadherence to phosphate, potassium, and BUN levels was 25.5%, 5.5%, and 4.5%, respectively. In addition, there was a relationship between BUN, serum potassium and phosphate levels, and IWG with educational status (p ≤ .05). However, there was no correlation between BUN, serum potassium and phosphate levels, and IWG with sex, age, financial status, marital status, and duration of dialysis (p > .05). Based on the results, most of the patients adhered to dietary and medication regimens. Educational level of the patients was associated with adherence to fluid restriction. It was concluded that dietary compliance may be improved by using dietary counseling techniques and that education motivates patients to change and comply with dietary recommendations.