Investigation of the relationship between hopelessness level and quality of life in patients with chronic Hepatitis B infection

Chronic hepatitis B infection is an important health problem that is common both in the world and in Turkey. Chronic diseases are diseases that require long and regular treatment and compare the patient and his/her immediate environment with economic, physical and mental difficulties. This study was carried out with patients who applied to Erzurum Atatürk University Research Hospital Infectious Diseases Polyclinic. The study covers the period between 25.10.2022 and 30.06.2023, and the data of the study were collected through a face-to-face survey during the weekday period between 05.12.2022 and 15.02.2023, following the ethics committee and institutional permissions. The data collection process was completed with the participation of 181 patients who applied to Atatürk University Research Hospital Infectious Diseases Polyclinic. The data of the study were collected with the Patient Description Form (Appendix-1), Beck Hopelessness Scale (Appendix 2), and Hepatitis B Quality of Life Scale (Appendix 3). Statistical analyzes were performed using a package program called SPSS (IBM SPSS Statistics 27). Frequency tables and descriptive statistics were used to interpret the findings. In accordance with non-parametric methods, the "Mann-Whitney U" test (Z-table value) was used to compare the measurement values of two independent groups, and the "Kruskal-Wallis H" test (χ2-table value) method was used to compare the measurement values of three or more independent groups. Bonferroni correction was applied for pairwise comparisons of variables with significant differences for three or more groups. "Spearman" correlation coefficient was used to examine the relationships of two quantitative variables that do not have a normal distribution. Negatively significant results were obtained between the Hepatitis B Quality of Life Scale total scores and sub-dimensions and the Beck Hopelessness Scale total score (r=-0.498; p<0.001). In this study, when we look at the total score of HBYLC in individuals under the age of 30 by gender, it is seen that the vulnerability sub-dimension is significantly higher in women. As a result of the study, we see that individuals with Chronic Hepatitis B infection may face different problems in coping with the disease process and in the adaptation to the disease due to the occurrence of psychological problems.