Korean J Hepatobiliary Pancreat Surg.  2015 Nov;19(4):149-153. 10.14701/kjhbps.2015.19.4.149.

Fatigue and related factors after liver transplantation

• Hong K
• Kim H
• Lee JM
• Lee KW
• Yi NJ
• Lee HW
• Choi Y
• Suh SW
• Hong SK
• Yoon KC
• Kim HS
• Suh KS

• KMID: 2130966
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.14701/kjhbps.2015.19.4.149

Abstract

BACKGROUNDS/AIMS
Fatigue is common in chronic hepatitis and end-stage liver disease. However, little is known about fatigue after liver transplantation (LT). We therefore evaluated the prevalence, severity, and related factors of fatigue after LT.
METHODS
We retrospectively reviewed adult recipients who responded to our survey at outpatient clinics between April and May 2013. Fatigue and its severity were assessed using a questionnaire with the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). We defined fatigue as FSS of 4.0 or more and severe fatigue as FSS of 5.1 or more. The related factors including hepatocellular carcinoma and complications were analyzed.
RESULTS
A total of 93 patients were included in this study. The mean age was 54.9 (19-76) years and two-thirds were men (67.7%). Living donor LT was 77.4%. Hepatitis B related liver disease was the main underlying disease (77.4%), with hepatocellular carcinoma accompanied in 33.3%. The mean follow-up period was 66.8+/-43.2 (2-171) months. The mean FFS was 2.83+/-1.48 (1.0-6.7) overall and 5.10+/-0.82 (4.0-6.7) in the fatigue group. Of the 93 adult patients, fatigue was presented in 20 patients (21.5%). Among these, 9 patients (45.0%) showed severe fatigue. Even though post-LT complications tended to be greater in the fatigue group (50.0% vs. 30.1% in the non-fatigue group, p=0.098), there were no significant related factors of fatigue after LT, including hepatocellular carcinoma and major complication.
CONCLUSIONS
Fatigue is present in a considerable portion of recipients after LT, and almost half of them have severe fatigue. Further efforts are needed to decrease fatigue in LT recipients.

Keyword

Liver transplantation; Fatigue; Risk factors; Complications

MeSH Terms

Adult
Ambulatory Care Facilities
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular
Fatigue*
Follow-Up Studies
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis, Chronic
Humans
Liver Diseases
Liver Transplantation*
Liver*
Living Donors
Male
Prevalence
Retrospective Studies
Risk Factors

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 The prevalence (A) and severity (B) of fatigue after liver transplantation.

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  Fig. 2 The distribution of patients and prevalence of fatigue after liver transplantation according to the patient age at the time of survey.

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