EFFECTIVENESS OF A PSYCHOLOGICAL INTERVENTION FOCUSED ON EXPRESSIVE WRITING IN KIDNEY TRANSPLANTED PATIENTS

EFFECTIVENESS OF A PSYCHOLOGICAL INTERVENTION FOCUSED ON EXPRESSIVE WRITING IN KIDNEY TRANSPLANTED PATIENTS Pierro Laura (1), Gaia Romana Pellicano (1), Daniela Sambucini (1), Edvaldo Begotaraj (1), Carlo Lai (1) (1) Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome Kidney transplantation is the final step of chronic renal failure and improves quality of life. However, it can be experienced as a traumatic experience in relation to the changes associated as the lifestyle, redefinition of one's body and social/family role. A negative personal experience may affect adherence, a protective factor in reducing the risk of organ rejection and mortality. Some studies have shown the effectiveness of expressive writing in reducing the symptoms and management of the disease in patients undergoing surgery or with cancer. It is hypothesized that this technique allows the processing of traumatic events linked to the disease, favouring an improvement in the capacity of expression and emotional regulation. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of a psychological expressive writing intervention on the post-operative course in patients undergoing kidney transplantation. Thirty-two patients were recruited at the Kidney Transplant Center of the Policlinico Umberto I of Rome. The sample was divided into 2 groups: the expressive writing group and a control group which carried out a “neutral” writing task. Each patient completed some self-report questionnaires before surgery, the hospital discharge’s day and the 3rd month follow-up. Thirty – five patients were recruited, 3 of them dropped out at T2, 3 had an organ rejection and following explantation and 1 dead for transplant complications. The related effects of the expressive writing on psychopathological variables and the predictive value of psychological factors on adherence, healthcare costs and rejection will be discussed.