Do health causal attributions and coping strategies act as moderators of quality of life in peritoneal dialysis patients?
OBJECTIVE
The present study aimed at testing the relationships between health causal attribution and coping mechanisms with quality of life (QOL) in patients who have end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing a peritoneal dialysis (PD) treatment. It was hypothesized that QOL should be negatively associated with the severity of the disease. Problem-focused coping, internal health-related locus of control (HRLOC) and medical power HRLOC were hypothesized as positive moderators preserving a better QOL, after controlling for the severity of the disease.


METHODS
A total of 47 PD patients completed the Kidney Disease Quality of Life (KD-QOL) scale encompassing the Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form (MOS SF-36) self-administered questionnaire, the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control scale and the Ways of Coping Check-List (WCCL) scale.


RESULTS
Low scores for all QOL scores were found except for pain dimension, as compared with scores available from a general French population. Globally, QOL was not related to the severity of the disease. Univariate analysis showed that the physical component score (PCS) of QOL was positively associated with internal HRLOC (r=.35; P<.05), and negatively with medical power HRLOC (r=-.36; P<.05). Multivariate analysis adjusting for age confirmed these results. Mental component score (MCS) was negatively associated with the use of emotion-focused coping and seeking social support (r=-.45; P=.001 and r=-.30; P<.05, respectively), the first association persisting in multivariate analysis. Neither PCS nor MCS was linked to the use of problem-focused coping.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that physical QOL is all the more preserved when patients are more convinced that their behaviour can influence their health condition and that psychological QOL is all the more impaired when health condition is perceived as less controllable, requiring emotion-focused coping (avoidance strategies). Health causal attributions and coping act respectively as moderators of physical and psychological components of QOL.
Pucheu
Sylvie
S
Department of C-L Psychiatry, Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidou, 20 rue Leblanc, 75015 Paris, France.
Consoli
Silla M
SM
D'Auzac
Christian
C
Français
Patrick
P
Issad
Belkacem
B
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003710:Demography; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D010530:Peritoneal Dialysis; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires