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A prospective study on living related kidney donors’ quality of life in the first year: choosing appropriate reference data
Author(s) -
Kroencke Sylvia,
Fischer Lutz,
Nashan Björn,
Herich Lena,
Schulz KarlHeinz
Publication year - 2012
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.1399-0012.2012.01691.x
Subject(s) - medicine , donation , anxiety , context (archaeology) , quality of life (healthcare) , population , depression (economics) , prospective cohort study , mental health , surgery , psychiatry , environmental health , paleontology , nursing , macroeconomics , economics , biology , economic growth
Prospective studies on living kidney donors’ quality of life ( Q o L ) are still rare. Most existing studies compare healthy donors with the general population, including subjects with diseases. This is the first prospective study comparing living donors’ Q o L with reference data of both the general population and healthy individuals. We investigated Q o L , anxiety, and depression in living kidney donors (n = 79) before donation and at two post‐operative data points (three months and one yr). Subsequently, data from the donors were compared with the reference data. Our results show an impaired physical Q o L three months post‐donation. One yr after surgery, physical Q o L had returned to the pre‐operative level. Neither mental Q o L nor anxiety or depression showed major changes across time. Pre‐operative Q o L was comparable to that of healthy individuals and higher than that in the general population. Donors’ perception of the recipient's health showed moderate correlations with donors’ mental outcome three months after donation. In conclusion, the impact on physical Q o L seems to persist for at least three months after kidney donation. It could be demonstrated that in the context of living donation, healthy individuals provide more adequate reference data. Future research needs to determine the length and the nature of the post‐operative Q o L impairment and further explore possible influencing factors.