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Objective measures of health‐related quality of life over 24 months post‐liver transplantation
Author(s) -
Krasnoff Joanne B.,
Vintro Andrea Q.,
Ascher Nancy L.,
Bass Nathan M.,
Dodd Marylin J.,
Painter Patricia L.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
clinical transplantation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.918
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1399-0012
pISSN - 0902-0063
DOI - 10.1111/j.1399-0012.2004.00306.x
Subject(s) - medicine , analysis of variance , quality of life (healthcare) , repeated measures design , liver transplantation , physical therapy , post hoc analysis , transplantation , physical fitness , clinical trial , longitudinal study , randomized controlled trial , statistics , mathematics , nursing , pathology
Abstract: Many studies have reported improved health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) from pre‐ to immediate post‐orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). However, few studies have evaluated longitudinal changes over the first 2 yr post‐OLT and none have simultaneously examined objective measures of health‐related fitness. A total of 50 OLT recipients (32 males,18 females; 51.4 ± 11.8 yr) completed testing at 2, 6, 12, and 24 months post‐OLT. Testing included assessment of exercise capacity (peak V O 2 ), quadriceps muscle strength, body composition, physical activity participation, and self‐reported functioning (SF‐36). Repeated measures of analysis of variance (ANOVA) with post hoc contrasts was performed to determine differences over time and a second ANOVA assessed differences over time between genders. All patients increased peak V O 2 , quadriceps muscle strength, and percent body fat (p < 0.0001) from 2 to 24 months. Men and women differed in their changes of peak V O 2 and percent body fat (p < 0.05). At 24 months, only 50% of the patients reported participating in regular physical activity. All SF‐36 physical measures except general health, improved from 2 to 24 months (p < 0.0001). Measures of health‐related fitness and QoL improve over the first 2 yr post‐OLT with the greatest gains occurring in the first 6 months and all measures remain lower than recommended for cardiovascular and overall health. A randomized clinical trial of lifestyle modifications such as diet and exercise intervention is warranted to determine the impact of such modifications on HRQoL and fitness post‐OLT.