The impact of biopsychosocial factors on quality of life: women with primary biliary cirrhosis on waiting list and post liver transplantation.

Objectives: Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is the second most common reason for liver transplants among women in the USA. While survival rates are high, there is evidence of persistent problems post-transplant. This study aimed to identify significant contributors to quality of life (QOL) for women with PBC on waiting list (WL) and post-transplant (PT) and compare QOL in each group with US population norms.

Uncertainty and liver transplantation: women with primary biliary cirrhosis before and after transplant.

Uncertainty is a frequent feature of chronic illness and can have a particularly important impact in the case of organ transplantation. This study of 100 women with primary biliary cirrhosis who were either waiting for or had already had a liver transplant focused on both changes in uncertainty with transplant and the correlates of uncertainty both pre- and post-transplant. While those who were post-transplant had significantly lower uncertainty scores (measured by the Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale-Adult Version-MUIS-A) than those on the waiting list, uncertainty was still persistent and associated with a reduced quality of life.

Fatigue as a major predictor of quality of life in women with autoimmune liver disease: the case of primary biliary cirrhosis.

Objectives: Fatigue is a nearly universal symptom of many chronic diseases, yet it is often poorly understood and underappreciated as a factor in quality of life (QOL). Generally, clinicians have relied on subjective measures of fatigue, if they consider it at all. This study uses well-validated instruments to examine fatigue as a predictor of QOL in women with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), an autoimmune, chronic liver disease.

Seasonal patterns of fatal and nonfatal falls among older adults in the U.S.

Introduction: While many believe that older adults fall more often during the winter months, research on this is inconclusive. This study used nationally representative data from 2001 to 2002 to examine unintentional fatal fall rates among older men and women by season and climate, and nonfatal fall rates by season.

Methods: We studied fatal and nonfatal unintentional falls among U.

Reputationally strong HIV prevention programs: lessons from the front line.

Although HIV prevention researchers have conducted numerous controlled outcome studies to evaluate the effectiveness of theory-based interventions aimed at reducing HIV risk behaviors, many HIV risk reduction interventions are conducted not by researchers but by staff in local health departments or community-based organizations (CBOs). Despite their widely recognized role in slowing the spread of HIV, very few attempts have been geared toward understanding the programmatic and organizational characteristics of their HIV prevention efforts. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Characteristics of Reputationally Strong Programs project identified and profiled 18 innovative, community-based, HIV prevention programs viewed by community partners as successful.

The role of an online community for people with a rare disease: content analysis of messages posted on a primary biliary cirrhosis mailinglist.

Background: This study focuses on the role of an Internet-based group for people who have an autoimmune liver disease, primary biliary cirrhosis. Primary biliary cirrhosis is a relatively rare disease, affects primarily women in their 40's and older, and is not well understood. The PBCers Organization (PBC stands for primary biliary cirrhosis) provides electronic mailinglists (listservs) and informational resources for those with primary biliary cirrhosis.