Among all of the pathway models, age, gender, education level, diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, duration of dialysis, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, serum albumin, triglycerides, serum creatinine and measured glomerular filtration rate were statistically significantly associated with CFS score and MoCA score (all P < 0.05), the association was not significant between other clinical characteristics (e.g. body mass index, hemoglobin) and CFS score or MoCA score. Here, ALB is linked to diabetes mellitus.