Compliance with the medical regimen and partner's quality of life after heart transplantation

Abstract

The authors investigated 40 heart transplant recipients and their partners to determine both the partner's quality of life upon transplantation and the experiences of both patient and partner with compliance with the medical regimen. Data on sleep disturbances, social isolation, emotional reactions, depression, anxiety, partner's apprehension, social support and compliance (regarding behaviour and emotional experience) were obtained approximately 21 months after transplantation. Compared to related study groups, partners did not experience more problems in sleep, social isolation, emotional reactions, depression and anxiety. Patients overestimated the apprehension of their partners significantly (p < 0.0001). Generally speaking, with the exception of three items relating to eating fish, canned food and forgetfulness in medicine intake, patients and partners agreed with respect to actual compliance behaviour. Lowest compliance concerned regular physical exercise: 28%. Both patient and partner insisted that they had scarcely any emotional problem with the regimen. Further systematic research is needed to bring to light factors that affect compliance as well as adequate methods to bring about an improvement therein.

Parental psychosocial outcomes in pediatric liver and/or intestinal transplantation: Pretransplantation and the early postoperative period

“…25,26 The current findings of high parental psychological distress may be a function of assessment performed in the perioperative period because past research has identified lower levels of psychological distress when assessments were made 1 or more years posttransplantation. 25,[27][28][29] Longitudinal prospective studies are needed to clarify the impact of time in relation to the transplantation on parental psychosocial adjustment.…”

The relationship of disease severity, health beliefs and medication adherence among HIV patients

“…In addition, studies have shown that several social factors, such as friends and family members' suggestion or behaviors (Stall et al, 1996;Foulkes, 1993), living alone (Besch et al, 1997;Morse et al, 1991), having an unstable social environment (Morse et al, 1991), caring for sick relatives (Muma et al, 1995), and being homeless (Samet et al, 1992) were associated with lower adherence. Conversely, a good relationship coupled with consistent support, particularly from a spouse or significant other (Evans et al, 1986;Somer and Tucker, 1988;Erdman et al, 1993), was associated with better adherence.…”

Onset, timing and risk for depression and anxiety in family caregivers to heart transplant recipients

“…Moreover, caregivers' mental health influences the care recipients' own health and well-being (Biegel et al 1991 ;Williamson & Shaffer, 2001;Burgener & Twigg, 2002). However, aside from studies of transplant caregivers' subclinical distress levels, primarily during the early aftermath of transplantation (Chowanec & Binik, 1989 ;Baumann et al 1992 ;Erdman et al 1993 ;Canning et al 1996;Foxall & Gaston-Johansson, 1996 ;Rodrigue et al 1997 ;Wicks et al 1998;Boyle et al 2000), there is little evidence regarding the prevalence and important risk factors for clinically significant psychiatric disorder in this population.…”