Abstract: Objective  To explore the concurrent symptom network characteristics of post-dialysis fatigue (PDF) in hemodialysis (HD) patients, identify the core symptoms and their interaction mechanisms, and thereby provide a basis for formulating precise symptom management strategies.  Methods A cross-sectional study design was adopted. Convenience sampling was used to select maintenance hemodialysis patients from the Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University between June and September 2021 as the study subjects. The Post-Dialysis Fatigue Scale was used to assess symptoms. Factor analysis was used to extract symptom clusters, and a symptom network was constructed based on the Gaussian graphical model (EBICglasso) to analyze core symptoms and network stability.  Results  A total of 147 patients were included. Factor analysis extracted 4 symptom clusters (depressive tendency, somatic pain, general debilitation, cardiopulmonary-metabolic symptoms), with a cumulative variance contribution rate of 70.90%. Symptom network analysis revealed a network containing 13 nodes and 36 edges, with a sparsity index of 0.538. The core symptom was lack of appetite (strength=1.793). Bootstrap testing confirmed the stability of the network structure [edge centrality stability coefficient (CS-C) > 0.75, centrality CS-C > 0.5].  Conclusion  PDF in HD patients exhibits characteristics of a multidimensional symptom interaction network, with lack of appetite as the core driver. Clinical interventions should focus on nutritional management and adopt a multidimensional symptom co-intervention strategy to improve patients' quality of life.

Key words: Hemodialysis, Post-dialysis fatigue, Symptom network analysis, Core symptoms, Nutritional management