A longitudinal study of fetal tissue transplantation surgery: The effects on quality of life and personality for individuals with Parkinson's disease.

摘要

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic and progressive condition that affects the physical, emotional, and social functioning of individuals. Freed et al. (2001) conducted a double-blind sham-controlled trial to investigate the effectiveness of fetal tissue transplantation of those with PD. The authors investigated the effects of the surgery across the dimensions of physical and neurological functioning. A quality of life (QoL) study was conducted to determine if there were differences in QoL when comparing those who received the fetal tissue transplantation to those who received the sham surgery (McRae et al., 2004).;While there is little research on the effectiveness of fetal tissue transplantation as a treatment for PD, there is even less literature on longitudinal effects of this treatment. This study examined the longitudinal trajectory of change in QoL since participants received fetal transplant surgery 10-12 years ago. Participants included 11 people who were in the parent (Freed et al., 2001) and original QoL (McRae, 2004) studies. Participants completed a questionnaire that measured the dimensions of QoL along with a personality inventory, the NEO-FFI. Data gathered from the questionnaires were compared to baseline, one-year, and two-year information on the same participants. Trajectory of change in QoL and personality was assessed with a repeated measures analysis of variance.;For the present study, significant changes over time were found for the Physical functioning (p .05) and Emotional functioning (p .10) dimensions of QoL. A significant result was also found for the Social functioning (p .05) dimension of QoL that was measured by the Social Provisions Scale. In addition, significant results were found for the Neuroticism (p .10), Extraversion (p .05), Openness to Experiences (p .05), and Conscientiousness (p .10) factors of the NEO-FFI. Participants reported a decrease in Physical, Emotional, and Social functioning between the two-year and current assessments. Participants reported an increase in Neuroticism, and a decrease in Extraversion, Openness to Experience, and Conscientiousness between the two-year and current assessments. Findings of the current study provided longitudinal information on the trajectories of fetal tissue transplantation on QoL and personality for participants with PD.