title: Psychological Reactions among Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B: a Qualitative Study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hepatitis B is the most prevalent type of viral hepatitis. Psychological reactions among patients with hepatitis B infection is considerably different and affects their decision about treating and following up the disease. The present study aims at explaining the psychological demonstrations experienced by these patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this qualitative study, a total of 18 patients with hepatitis B (8 women and 10 men) were selected by purposive sampling method. Data were collected by unstructured in-depth interviews during 2014-2015 in the medical centers of three cities in Iran. All interviews were recorded, typed and analyzed by the conventional content analysis approach.
  
  
  RESULTS
  By analyzing the data, the main theme including psychological instability, with three sub-themes were emerged: grief reaction (stupor, denial, anger and aggression), emotional challenges (worry and apprehension, contradiction with beliefs, fear of deprivation, fear of stigma, waiting for death and prognosis ambiguity) and inferiority complex (social withdrawal, sense of humiliation and embarrassment and sense of guilt and blame) were acquired.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings indicate that patients with hepatitis B experience various psychological reactions that need to be controlled and managed by themselves or healthcare providers. Thus, implementation of health interventions with emphasis on psychological care to prevent problems and execution of educational and consultation programs about hepatitis especially by medical centers and mass media is seems necessary.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
authors.forename: Leila
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Valizadeh
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical-Surgical Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
authors.forename: Vahid
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Zamanzadeh
authors.affiliation: Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Reza
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Negarandeh
authors.affiliation: Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zamani
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hamidia
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zabihi
keywords: Chronic disease; Hepatitis B; Patients; Psychology; Qualitative research