Psychosocial determinants of quality of life 6 months after transplantation: longitudinal prospective study.
OBJECTIVE
We sought to investigate the psychosocial determinants of quality of life at 6 months after transplantation.


METHODS
A sample of liver transplant candidates (n = 60), composed of consecutive patients (25% with familial amyloid polyneuropathy [FAP]) attending outpatient clinics was assessed in the pretransplant period using the Neo Five Factor Inventory, Hospital Anxiety and depression Scale (HADS), Brief COPE, and SF-36, a quality-of-life, self-rating questionnaire. Six months after transplantation, these patients were assessed by means of the SF-36.


RESULTS
Psychosocial predictors where found by means of multiple regression analysis. The physical component of quality of life at 6 months after transplantation was determined based upon coping strategies and physical quality of life in the pretransplant period (this model explained 32% of variance). The mental component at 6 months after transplantation was determined by depression in the pretransplant period and by clinical diagnoses of patients. Because FAP patients show a lower mental component of quality of life, this diagnosis explained 25% of the variance.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggested that coping strategies and depression measured in the pretransplant period are important determinants of quality of life at 6 months after liver transplantation.
Psychiatric Approach to Liver Transplanted Patients' Unit, Curry Cabral Hospital's Liver Transplantation Center, Lisbon, Portugal. tellesdiogo@gmail.com
D
D
Telles-Correia
A
A
Barbosa
I
I
Mega
E
E
Mateus
E
E
Monteiro
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D028227:Amyloid Neuropathies, Familial / Q000601:surgery*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000453:epidemiology; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000145:classification / Q000601:surgery; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D010551:Personality; D011584:Psychology; D011788:Quality of Life; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires