Effect of Aloe Vera gel on relief of hemodialysis patients' pruritus

Pruritus is one of the most common problems in patients with kidney failure. 60-80% of dialysis patients complain of itchy skin for which different therapies have been recommended. Medicinal plants compose a group of these therapies. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of aloe Vera gel on pruritus in hemodialysis patients. This clinical trial was conducted on 60 hemodialysis patients with moderate and severe uremic pruritus in the hospitals affiliated to Arak University of Medical Sciences. The written consent forms were obtained from the patients. The participants were then randomly divided into two groups of 30. The intervention group was treated with Aloe Vera gel twice a day for one month. The control group did not receive any treatment. The patients in both groups recorded their itching twice a day through a visual analog scale. The data before and after the treatment were compared. The data were analyzed by paired t-test and independent t-test through SPSS 17. The mean pruritus before and after the intervention in the group treated by Aloe Vera gel was 5.53 ± 1.73 and 2.03 ± 1.12, respectively (p = 0.001). In the control group, it was 5.96 ± 1.03 and 5.9 ± 0.75 (p = 0.423). Since many drugs used to treat pruritus in dialysis patients are expensive and cause problems such as allergies and drug resistance, it is recommended that these patients use Aloe Vera gel to control their itchy skin condition.