Study of the factors affecting health-related quality of life in adolescents after liver transplantation.

The aim of the study was to identify factors affecting health-related quality of life (HRQL) in adolescents after liver transplantation. HRQL was measured using the CHQ-CF87 in 55 adolescents, aged 12-18 years. Factors associated with HRQL included allograft morbidity, psychological and family-related variables measured through standardized questionnaires. The domains of the CHQ-CF87 were reduced using factor analysis to give physical, psychological and social domains. Impacting factors were identified through stepwise, multiple regression analysis. Adolescents had significantly lower HRQL in every domain except for role/social-behavior and family cohesion compared to the general population. Adolescents experienced median 18 (range 4-31) symptoms related to immunosuppression, 40(75%) had one or more chronic illnesses related to immunosuppression and 12(22%) had a history of emotional difficulties. Self-esteem and emotional health were similar to the general population but behavior and aspects of family function were lower. Following regression analysis, the factors associated with HRQL were: age at transplant, secondary chronic illness, symptom distress, headaches, history of emotional difficulties, self-esteem and family conflict. These explained 57% of the variance in physical function, 61% of psychological function and 39% of social function. HRQL is significantly reduced in adolescents after transplantation, which could be related to immunosuppression and psychosocial factors.