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During the congress, E-Posters will be accessible to all participants on the congress website 24/7, as well as in the E-poster stations in the congress center.
Preparing your E-Poster
Please review the E-Poster format requirements carefully when preparing your E-Poster. Should your E-Poster not meet the mentioned requirements, it may not be displayed as described above.
E-Poster Submission Deadline
Please prepare and upload your E-Poster no later than March 14, 2026 11.59PM CET. After this date, you will no longer be able to prepare and upload your E-poster and it will not be displayed and accessible on the congress website.
Please follow the instructions below to input your abstract title.
Abstract titles should be brief and reflect the content of the abstract.
Pain is a frequent and critical problem in daily hemodialysis practice. Local cold application before needle insertion is a simple, non-pharmacological method that may reduce pain through cutaneous analgesia. This study aimed to determine the optimal duration of cold pack application to minimize cannulation pain without increasing complications.
A prospective crossover study was conducted in maintenance hemodialysis patients, each serving as their own control. Six sessions were performed sequentially: control (no intervention), followed by cold pack application for 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 minutes before cannulation. Pain intensity was assessed using a numerical rating scale (0–10) immediately after the procedure (Figure 1). Statistical comparisons were performed using the Friedman test, with pairwise Wilcoxon signed-rank tests and Bonferroni correction. Local complications (erythema, bruising, prolonged bleeding) were monitored after each session.
A total of 31 patients completed all sessions. The median age was 62 years, with 52% male, and the proportion of AVF to AVG access was 26:5. Median pain scores progressively decreased with longer cold pack duration: control 8 (IQR 7–10), 1 minute 7 (5–8), 2 minutes 6 (5–8), 3 minutes 5 (4–6), 4 minutes 4 (3–5), and 5 minutes 3 (2–3). Pain reduction became statistically significant compared with control beginning at 2 minutes (p < 0.001), with the greatest reduction observed after 4–5 minutes of cooling (Figure 2). Pairwise contrasts confirmed significantly lower pain scores at 3–5 minutes compared with shorter durations. Three patients (10%) withdrew due to mild skin irritation after cooling, and no other local complications were observed.
Pre-cannulation cold pack application for 3–4 minutes significantly reduces cannulation pain without increasing adverse effects. This simple, safe, and low-cost intervention can improve patient comfort during hemodialysis.
