Patients' experiences of illness, operation and outcome with reference to gastro-oesophageal reflux disease.
BACKGROUND
Describing the illness-story from a patient perspective could increase understanding of living with a chronic disease for health professionals and others, facilitate decision-making about treatment and enhance information about the outcome from a patient perspective.


OBJECTIVE
To illuminate patients' illness experiences of having a gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD), going through surgery and the outcome.


METHODS
Twelve patients were interviewed 5 years after having had the operation; six patients had had fundoplication via laparoscopy and six via open surgery. Each patient was asked to talk openly about their experiences, thoughts, feelings and consequences of living with the illness, going through surgery and the period from surgery to the day of interview. A qualitative content analysis was performed concerning the context of the data and its meaning.


RESULTS
Three central categories were identified and nine subcategories: living with GORD- symptoms of the disease affecting daily living, taking medicines, work, family and social life; concerns related to surgery- decision-making about the operation, influence by physicians; life after the operation- outcomes and consequences, side-effects and complications of the operation, sick leave, information and sharing experiences with future patients. All patients were free from symptoms of the illness after surgery independent of type of surgery, but side-effects from surgical treatment varied individually. Interviewees would have liked information concerning side-effects after surgery from previous patients.


CONCLUSIONS
This study contributes to knowledge about patients' long-term suffering, their control of symptoms and how they have tried to cure themselves, but also about their concerns about surgery and the importance of surgical treatment to their quality of life. They wanted information about treatment, outcome and consequences, not only from a health care perspective but also from previous patients having had the same treatment.
Nilsson
Gunilla
G
Department of Nursing, Lund University, Lund, Sweden. gunilla.nilsson@omv.lu.se
Larsson
Sylvia
S
Johnsson
Folke
F
Saveman
Britt-Inger
BI
D000041:Absenteeism; D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003657:Decision Making; D004945:Esophagoscopy / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D018662:Fundoplication / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000523:psychology*; D005764:Gastroesophageal Reflux / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery*; D005773:Gastroscopy / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000592:standards; D011788:Quality of Life; D012648:Self Care / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome