title: Quality of life in adult survivors beyond 10 years after liver, kidney, and heart transplantation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The yearly increasing survival rates testify to the success of transplantation, but questions remain relating to the quality of life (QOL) associated with long-term survival.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sample of 126 liver recipients (Liver-R), 229 kidney recipients (Kidney-R), and 113 heart recipients (Heart-R) with more than 10 years posttransplant follow-up were included in the study with a response rate of 86%. Respondents were matched with healthy subjects recruited from general population (GP). The three groups of recipients and GP subjects completed a French version of the questionnaire used by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease, Pittsburgh, PA, and were compared for each score, with adjustments for age and sex.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Personal function and measures of disease by the transplant recipients were significantly worse than in the GP (P<0.0001), with the worst score in Kidney-R. No difference, either between organs or between organs and GP, was found regarding the perceived social and role function. However, for psychologic status and general health perception, Kidney-R had the least favorable performance when compared with GP (P<0.01) and also when compared with Liver-R (P<0.05). With the exception of Kidney-R, the well-being index of Liver-R and Heart-R was significantly better than the GP (P<0.001 and P<0.05, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The QOL beyond 10 years after liver, heart, and kidney transplantation is quite similar to the GP, with Kidney-R starting out as the worst, Heart-R as intermediate, and Liver-R the best.
authors.affiliation: Centre Hépato Biliaire, Hôpital Paul Brousse, 4 Avenue Paul Vaillant-Couturier, 94804 Villejuif Cedex, France. vincent.karam@pbr.ap-hop-paris.fr
authors.forename: Vincent H
authors.initials: VH
authors.lastname: Karam
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gasquet
authors.forename: Valérie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Delvart
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hiesse
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dorent
authors.forename: Colette
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Danet
authors.forename: Didier
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Samuel
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Charpentier
authors.forename: Iradj
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gandjbakhch
authors.forename: Henri
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bismuth
authors.forename: Denis
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Castaing
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005602:France; D016027:Heart Transplantation / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D008875:Middle Aged; D009790:Occupations; D011788:Quality of Life; D012919:Social Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D013997:Time Factors