Quality of Life, Perceptions, and Health Satisfaction of Older Adults with End-Stage Renal Disease: A Systematic Review.

Objectives: To explore the quality of life (QOL), perceptions, and health satisfaction of older adults with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing renal replacement therapy (RRT).

Design: Systematic review of literature.

Participants: Individuals with ESRD undergoing RRT aged 65 and older.

Measurements: Articles identified from PubMed database search from January 1994 to December 2014. The methodological quality of each of the selected articles was assessed using eight standards adapted from well-established research quality review criteria.

Results: Of the initial 1,401 articles identified, 23 met the inclusion criteria. The age range of study participants examined was 65 to 90. Seventy-eight percent of the studies met six or more of the methodological standards; 47% found overall health-related and mental component summary QOL scores in elderly adults with ESRD to be similar to or higher than those of age-matched controls or younger individuals, although the physical component summary QOL scores tended to be lower in older adults. Only six studies addressed health satisfaction and perceptions of elderly adults with ESRD, with widely variable findings.

Conclusion: Few studies specifically examine QOL in elderly adults with ESRD undergoing RRT and even fewer address issues of perceptions and health satisfaction. However, the limited data from the QOL studies looks promising with a significant proportion showing similar or higher overall health-related and mental component summary QOL scores in elderly adults with ESRD. The very limited data on perceptions and health satisfaction of elderly adults with ESRD undergoing RRT makes it difficult to make any generalizable conclusions. Overall, more research is needed to examine these factors in elderly adults with ESRD.