Estratégias de enfrentamento e qualidade de vida em pacientes transplantados renais

Abstract

The renal transplantation is a surgical procedure that consists in the replacement of a healthy kidney from a donor in the recipient, this therapy aims into a better quality of life (QOL), but does not represents the cure of the end-stage renal disease. After the surgery, the recipient needs to adjust to the use of immunosuppressants drugs and the regular evaluation of your health status. In addition, the person who receives the kidney transplantation starts to live with the possibility of clinical complications and the fear of rejection of the renal graft. These experiences are potential triggers of anxiety and distress, obliging the patient to adapt in front of the demands of the treatment itself. The inadequate management of stressors after kidney transplantation may become a barrier to the effectiveness of this therapy. In this sense, it is necessary to identify in the post-transplant patients the coping strategies that they use in the face of the adversities of the treatment and their relationship with the QOL. The purpose of this study was to evaluate quality of life and coping strategies in renal transplant patients. The study included 150 transplant recipients whoa follow up in the clinic at the University Hospital Onofre Lopes. For the evaluation of the patients, the following instruments were used: sociodemographic questionnaire, the Whoqol-Bref instrument and the Ways of Coping Scale. Data analysis was based on descriptive and inferential statistics. The results showed adequate levels of satisfaction with health, presenting a mean score of 79.83 and a global QOL score of 78.16. With regard to the use of coping strategies, it was found that the confrontation focused on religiosity / fanciful thoughts presented the highest mean (3.72), followed by the problem-centered coping strategy (3.70), these coping modes were the most used by the transplanted ones. Regarding the correlations between the constructs investigated, positive correlations were identified between the use of the strategy focused on the problem and the domains of QOL and negative correlations between the strategy focused on the emotion and the domains evaluated by the Whoqol-Bref. Renal transplantation therapy showed positive results for the end-stage renal disease. Regarding modes of coping, it has been found that these may be related to adaptive or maladaptive behaviors in the face of transplantation.