Depressive symptoms and associated factors among renal-transplant recipients in China

Aim:This study aimed to explore depressive symptoms and associated factors among renal-transplant(RT)recipients in China.Methods:This study included 287 RT recipients.Data were collected from August to November 2014 by utilizing demographic forms,namely,the Self-rating Depression Scale and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support.Descriptive statistics,Student's t test,Chi-square test,ANOVA,and multiple linear regression were used for data analysis.Results:More than half of the recipients presented depressive symptoms.All recipients in the four transplant period groups(≤5 yr,5e10 yr,10e15 yr,and>15 yr)reported greater depressive symptoms than the Norm.No significant difference was observed in the depressive symptoms in the four transplant period groups.Multiple linear regression indicated that depressive symptoms were significantly associated with employment status,economic burden,inhabitation area,and social support.Conclusion:Depression is common among RT recipients in China.Employment status,economic burden,inhabitation area,and social support are the main factors affecting depression among RT recipients.Follow-up clinics should prescribe the evaluation of depression as a routine examination for RT patients.Moreover,depressed recipients must be provided with individualized care by collecting information on the depressive symptoms,employment status,economic burden,inhabitation area,and perceived social support of recipients.

The application of the necessity-concerns framework in investigating adherence and beliefs about immunosuppressive medication among Chinese liver transplant recipients

Objective： This study aimed to explore adherence to and beliefs about immunosuppressive medication using the Necessity-Concerns Framework（NCF） in liver transplant recipients.Methods： A cross-sectional study performed in recipients who were at least 3 months post liver transplantation. A convenience sample of 243 recipients was recruited. Self-reported medication adherence was measured by the Basel Assessment of Adherence with Immunosuppressive Medication Scale（BAASIS）. The NCF was operationalized using the Beliefs about Medication Questionnaire（BMQ） to assess the beliefs about necessity and concerns with taking immunosuppressive medication.Results： One-hundred-forty-five liver transplant recipients were non-adherent（59.67%）. Compared to adherers, non-adherers had lower beliefs regarding the necessity of taking immunosuppressive medication and lower scores on the necessity-concerns different from adherers.Conclusions： Non-adherence is common in liver transplant recipients. Non-adherers hold beliefs that are different from adherers. Efforts to increase adherence should be made by targeting medication beliefs.