Conceptualización de la enfermedad renal y el trasplante Conceptualizing kidney disease and transplant

The present study examined the psychological meaning of some concepts by patients attending the transplant service of a high specialty hospital. Following the technique proposed by Reyes (1993), semantic networks of the following four concepts, presented in ramdom order, were recorded: chronic terminal kidney disease, transplant, dialysis, and graft loss. The core network for the whole sample was also analyzed, as were the synonyms for each concept, and the differences in psychological meaning between the groups. Several conceptual and clinical implications of the main findings are discussed.