Psychological Factors Facilitating the Recovery of Bone Marrow Transplant Patients: A Systematic Review

Investigating the psychological factors that facilitate the recovery of bone marrow transplant patients is crucial for appropriate policymakers to identify potential problems and develop appropriate interventions for the better benefit and increasing success of bone marrow transplantation. The aim of this study was to review the psychological factors facilitating the recovery of bone marrow transplant patients.

In this systematic review, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) utilized, along with their possible implications for risk of bias. In this regard, required information took from Science Direct, Scopus, PubMed databases for the selection of Latin articles and Persian articles databases, ISC with the selection period ranging from 1987 to 2022 for English articles and from the years 1390 to 1401 for selection of Persian articles. Based on the desired criteria, they limited. The narrative synthesis method used for combine the data.

In this study, the quality of 37 articles confirmed and psychological factors influencing the recovery of bone marrow transplant patients identified. Physical distress, decrease in patients' quality of life, psychosocial well-being, the possibility of increasing symptoms of anxiety and depression, are among the biggest challenges facing patient. Factors such as spirituality, health literacy, sports and psychological interventions aimed at disease acceptance the disease and increase psychological well-being and healthy coping strategies have a significant impact on improving psychological and medical health outcomes. Depression, homesick, tension, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, delusions and cognitive deficits, feelings of lack of choice, need for special attention, and isolation are inevitable consequences of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Some psychosocial variables (depression, anxiety, stress, coping strategies, social support, optimism, rationality, and need for coordination) and clinical parameters indicating immune response after bone marrow transplantation.

Identifying psychological factors influencing the recovery of bone marrow transplant patients, including; health literacy, sports programs, optimism, gender, social support, mental health, lifestyle factors, understanding of transplant, and follow-up are influential in setting protocols to increase the mental health and survival of bone marrow transplant patients. Identifying psychological factors that facilitate the treatment process helps psychologists and the medical team to identify and strengthen these factors in patients. To moderate the negative psychological consequences of transplantation, it is desirable to perform psychological interventions and to recognize and strengthen the positive psychological structures within the psyche by the treatment staff and the psychologist. Additionally, regulating the natural day and night cycle, palliative care, antipsychotic medication, disease management, lead to better health outcomes.