Dermatological Manifestations in Pediatric Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

Abstract Background Dermatological manifestations in pediatric patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are diverse and are an important cause of morbidity. There are specific and nonspecific manifestations associated with CKD, however most of the studies have been conducted in adult patients. Data are scarce in in pediatric CKD patients both on conservative management and on renal replacement therapy. Objective This study aimed to screen pediatric patients with CKD stage 5 on regular hemodialysis for various dermatological manifestations. Methods This was a cross sectional study, conducted at the Pediatric Nephrology and Dialysis unit, Children’s Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, on pediatric patients with chronic kidney disease stage 5 on regular hemodialysis. Full clinical dermatological examination was conducted for all patients by the same expert dermatologist. Results We included 35 patients with chronic kidney disease stage 5 on regular hemodialysis, their mean (±SD) age was 11 (±2.53) years. They were 44.2% males, and 59.3% females, with median (IQR) dialysis duration of 2.5 (1 - 4) years. Xerosis was found in 80% of our studied patients, followed by pruritis in 60%. Our study found that dermatological manifestations had no significant correlation with the underlying CKD etiology, the age of the patients, and the total duration of dialysis (p > 0.05). Conclusion Xerosis and pruritis are not uncommon dermatological manifestations among pediatric patients with chronic kidney disease, meanwhile the age of the patients and the underlying CKD etiology had no direct effect on skin changes. Further studies are needed to detect various skin manifestations in CKD patients with different CKD stages and correlate it with the used dialysis modalities.