Psychiatry Research EG

Background High rates of psychiatric morbidity have been reported after successful renal transplantation. Aim The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among renal transplant recipients and to study their sociodemographic and medical correlates. Patients and methods A stratified random sample of 230 postrenal transplant recipients was selected from the nephrology clinics of Ain Shams University Specialized Hospital and from Nasser Institute Nephrology Clinics. All cases were subjected to a semistructured questionnaire for renal transplant recipients, the socioeconomic family scale, the Arabic version of the General Health Questionnaire-28, and the Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed. Axis I Disorders. Results The prevalence of psychiatric morbidity was 39.1%. Major depression was the most frequently encountered diagnosis (16.52%), followed by adjustment disorder with depressed mood (9.13%), dysthymia (8.26%), generalized anxiety disorder (4.35%), and post-traumatic stress disorder (0.87%). There was a statistically significant association between psychiatric morbidity and age, occupational level, and marital status. However, there was no significant association between psychiatric morbidity and sex, educational level, social class, side effects of drugs received after transplant, medical diseases other than renal impairment, duration of hemodialysis therapy before surgery, and type of donor. Conclusion The frequency of psychiatric morbidity is quite high in renal transplantation recipients, which necessitates thorough screening of the demographic and clinical variables. The involvement of mental health professionals with the team of renal transplantation can help and facilitate early detection and proper intervention to help patients suffering from psychiatric complications after the surgery. Keywords: demographic data, psychiatric morbidity, renal transplant recipients, renal transplantation