Symptom experiences of lung transplant recipients: Comparisons across gender, pretransplantation diagnosis, and type of transplantation

Purposes: To investigate symptom experiences of patients who have single and bilateral-sequential lung transplantation and to determine whether differences exist according to gender, pretransplantation diagnosis, and type of transplantation procedure. Design And Methods: In the context of a descriptive, comparative survey design, surviving recipients of single and bilateral-sequential lung transplants (n = 56) were mailed a symptom frequency and distress questionnaire. The response rate was 85.7% (n = 48). The average time since the recipients’ lung transplantations was 1.5 ± 0.7 years. Results: Recipients of lung transplants reported that several symptoms (eg, muscle weakness, shortness of breath with activity, and changed appearance) were both frequently occurring and quite distressing. Other symptoms were identified as being distressing, but not frequently occurring, or vice versa. Significant (P < .05) differences were found for symptom experiences among pretransplant diagnostic groups and between genders and types of transplant procedures. Conclusions: These findings elucidate the symptom experiences of recipients of lung transplants and suggest that subgroup differences exist. The data provide a basis for strengthening patient and family education and for developing symptom management strategies. Further investigation of the symptom experiences of the recipients of lung transplants is needed, especially in relation to subgroups. (Heart Lung® 1999;28:429-37)