Continuous data were described using mean and standard
deviation (SD) for normally distributed variables and otherwise
by median and interquartile range. A t-test for independent
samples, Mann–Whitney U-test and chi-square test
were used to examine between-groups differences at baseline.
All continuous variables were tested for normal distribution.A t-test for independent samples was used for normally
distributed continuous variables, and if the distribution was
not approximately normal, Mann–Whitney U-test was used.
The two-way repeated-measures ANOVA was conducted to
compare the outcomes in the experimental group with that
in the control group over time. The module was specified
with between-subjects factor of groups (1, experimental; and
2, control), within-subject variables of time (1, baseline; 2,
three months postintervention; and 3, six months postintervention)
and interaction between group and time. If there
were statistically significant interaction effects, one-way
repeated-measures ANOVA was performed to analyse the simple
main effect of different time in each group and post hoc
t-test was conducted to analyse group differences.
The effects of the intervention were analysed by an intention-
to-treat (ITT) analysis. According to ITT principle,
data were analysed for all participants regardless of
whether they died or underwent transplantation. We used
the principle of last observation carried forward (LOCF)
where the last available value in dropouts was carried forward
to represent the missing test occasions. SPSS 16.0 was
used for analysis, and p < 005 was regarded as significant.