The effectiveness of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for fatigue in people living with chronic kidney disease: A protocol for a systematic review

by Hannah Mary Louise Young, Lisa Ancliffe, Ffion Curtis, Oluwafemi Efuntoye, Matthew PM Graham-Brown, Selina Lock, Kathrine Parker, Chris Rolfe, Ellesha Smith, Aniebiot-Abasi Udofia, James O Burton, Caroline Booth, Ishida Yuko, Daniel Scott March Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects approximately 850 million people worldwide and is associated with a substantial and growing symptom burden. Fatigue is one of the most common and debilitating symptoms across all stages of CKD, with prevalence far exceeding that of the general population.

It profoundly affects quality of life, daily functioning, and clinical outcomes, underscoring the need to identify and evaluate effective pharmacological and non-pharmacological strategies for its management. This protocol outlines methods for a systematic review to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and perceived effectiveness of interventions for fatigue in people with CKD.

We will include randomised controlled trials, non-randomised controlled trials, before-and-after studies, and qualitative evaluations in adults and children with any stage of CKD. Searches will be conducted in MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science Core Collection, PsycINFO, and ClinicalTrials.gov, alongside grey literature via Google Scholar.