Psychosocial evaluation of Chinese living related kidney donors.
BACKGROUND
Although living kidney transplantation has numerous advantages over cadaveric transplantation, donor apprehension remains a problem. This study investigated psychosocial features and quality of life in Chinese living kidney donors after transplantation procedures.


METHODS
Participants were 84 donors interviewed during follow-up after donation. Sociodemographic characteristics were evaluated by a 22-item questionnaire. Social support, quality of life, depression, and anxiety were objectively measured with the Social Support Rating Scale for Chinese, the Short-Form 36 Health Survey, the modified Beck Depression Inventory, and the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale questionnaire, respectively.


RESULTS
All donors volunteered without pressure from families or recipients. Altruistic motives were the main impetus for donation, and donors had good social support. Living transplantation affected donors' quality of life, with a slight negative effect on some physical aspects. There were no major depressive or anxiety disorders following donation.


CONCLUSIONS
Living kidney donation was a generally positive experience without evidence of major psychological disturbance. However, considering the limited size and duration of our study, we recommend careful follow-up of all donors. We also recommend provision of social support services and removal of financial disincentives for donors.
Zhao
Wen-Yu
WY
Organ Transplantation Institute of PLA, Changzheng Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, China.
Zeng
Li
L
Zhu
You-Hua
YH
Wang
Li-Ming
LM
Zhou
Mei-Sheng
MS
Han
Shu
S
Zhang
Lei
L
D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000523:psychology*; D019520:Living Donors / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011788:Quality of Life; D012917:Social Adjustment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult