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PubMed1994

A health profile of spousal Alzheimer's caregivers. Depression and physical health characteristics.

1. For caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease (AD), each day holds unexpected challenges and losses of personal control. Both physical and emotional health are at risk for caregivers of persons with AD. 2. Depression is a problem for caregivers, whether the spouse with AD remains in the home or has been transferred to a nursing home. 3. It is important for clinicians to advise caregivers that depression is a treatable disorder. When a caregiver complains of sleep problems, a red flag for depression should go up.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Attitudes towards aging and physical health.

Brief narrative descriptions of four hypothetical individuals who differed in age and physical health were developed and presented to people who differed in age and sex. Each participant read only one of the four profiles. After reading the profile, the participant rated the profiled individual on the Rosencrantz and McNevin (1969) semantic differential scale of attitudes towards aging. Respondents were divided into a young group (29 years or younger), a middle-aged group (30-49 years), and an old group (50 years and older). No participant gender effects were found. All three age groups rated the older and younger profiles of persons in poor health more negatively than those describing healthy persons on each of the three dimensions of the Rosencrantz-McNeven scale. Older respondents tended to view the younger healthy profile and to a lessor extent the younger-sick profile more positively than the older profiles, but the young and middle-aged respondents viewed the older profiles more positively than the younger profiles on all three dimensions of the scale. These findings suggest that (a) a major component of negative attitudes toward the aged may be related to the more likely occurrence of physical illness in this age group, and (b) more negative attitudes toward the aged are more likely to occur in older than younger respondents regardless of health status.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Self-regulation of common age-related challenges: benefits for older adults' psychological and physical health.

This article addresses the role played by adaptive self-regulation in protecting older adults' psychological and physical health. A theoretical model is outlined illustrating how common age-related challenges (i.e., physical challenges and life regrets) can influence older adults' health. In addition, the proposed model suggests that older adults can avoid the adverse health effects of encountering these problems if they engage in adaptive self-regulation. Finally, this article reviews recent studies that examined the adaptive value of self-regulation processes for managing physical challenges and life regrets in the elderly. The findings from cross-sectional, longitudinal, and experimental studies document the importance of adaptive self-regulation for maintaining older adults' health.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Effects of bereavement on self-perceptions of physical health in elderly widows and widowers.

Multiple indices of self-perceived physical health for 212 older widows and widowers, 2 months following the loss of their spouse, were contrasted with the responses of 162 comparison control participants for a comparable period. Although physician visits and hospitalizations were reported to be no more frequent among the bereaved, they did report significantly more recently developed or worsened illnesses, greater use of medications, and poorer health ratings in general. These differences were independent of sex and variation in socioeconomic background. Significant sex differences, although minimal, indicated poorer perceived health among women.

Aged↗
PubMed1993

Changes in women's physical health during the first postpartum year.

OBJECTIVE: To examine changes in women's physical health during the first postpartum year. DESIGN: Participants completed surveys at 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months post partum. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Four hundred thirty-six first-time mothers who gave birth at one of two St Paul, Minn, hospitals during a 12-month period and who met the criteria for the study. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Physical symptoms and number of illness days experienced within the previous 2 weeks. RESULTS: Physical problems seen at a higher prevalence at 1 month post partum included breast symptoms, vaginal discomfort, fatigue, hemorrhoids, poor appetite, constipation, increased sweating, acne, hand numbness or tingling, dizziness, hot flashes, and illness days. Several of these disorders--hemorrhoids, dizziness, fatigue, and constipation--persisted beyond 1 month and were joined by other "late" problems, including respiratory symptoms, sexual concerns, and hair loss. Women who returned to the work force noted more symptoms of respiratory infections, and women with vaginal deliveries had a higher prevalence of hemorrhoids, vaginal discomfort, pain with intercourse, difficulty reaching orgasm, sinus problems, and acne. CONCLUSIONS: Recovery from childbirth often requires more than the 6 weeks traditionally allotted, and postpartum health appears to be affected by delivery type and work status.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Severe psychiatric disorder and physical health risks.

IN THIS ARTICLE, research findings are discussed that indicate a high rate of general physical health problems in persons with persistent, long-term psychiatric disorders. The self-regulation theory of health behaviors is proposed as a method to examine the complexity of interpreting physical complaints and discomforts. Attribution of meaning to vague physical symptoms is confounded by mood states, especially negative moods. Little is known about how persons with persistent mental disorders assess physical symptoms, which is relevant to self-care behavior. Research evidence suggests that persons with chronic health problems use different patterns of symptom interpretation and management than do healthy persons with similar symptoms.

Affect↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Physical health burdens of women with trauma histories and co-occurring substance abuse and mental disorders.

This article documents the physical health burdens of participants in a large, federally funded cross-site study of specialized services for women with histories of trauma (physical or sexual abuse) and co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders. Nearly half of the 2729 women in the study (48%) reported serious physical illnesses that frequently limited their daily life activities or required them to use special equipment. Nearly half (46%) rated their health status as only fair or poor. Given the prevalence of physical illnesses in this population, behavioral service providers should discuss with clients their overall health and how it might hinder their participation in treatment for trauma, substance abuse, and mental illness, and policymakers should consider this need when designing behavioral health requirements, setting reimbursement rates, and allocating funds.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2002

Cumulative abuse experiences, physical health and health behaviors.

PURPOSE: Our purpose was to investigate the complex relationship between a range of lifetime abuse experiences with current physical health and health behaviors. METHODS: Between October 1998 and May 1999, interviews were conducted with 557 ethnically diverse women seen at two urban primary care centers. Seven forms of abuse were measured: childhood physical and sexual abuse, past physical and sexual intimate partner violence (IPV), and recent emotional, physical, and sexual IPV. Severity was measured for six of these forms. Multiple non-specific physical symptoms were measured with a modified PRIME-MD, and four health behaviors were ascertained. RESULTS: Approximately 10% of women never experiencing abuse reported multiple non-specific physical symptoms, compared with 25.8% to 78.4% of women reporting a range of abuse experiences. Increases in recent IPV, past IPV, child abuse, and economic hardship were associated with increases in reported symptoms. Women who experienced IPV were more likely to report smoking cigarettes, binge drinking, and having poor nutritional habits. CONCLUSIONS: Recent IPV is associated with physical symptoms and risky health behaviors beyond the effects of child abuse, past IPV, and economic disadvantage. Understanding a person's IPV experiences may inform interventions for health behaviors, such as smoking cessation programs.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Emotional and physical health problems of battered women.

The present study focused on the emotional and physical health problems of battered women by comparing a sample of residents in shelters with a group of women in the community matched for family income, length of marriage, and number of children on the General Health Questionnaire. The results indicated that battered women report a significantly higher level of somatic complaints, anxiety, and depression. These effects tended to be associated with other life stressors and children with serious behavior problems. The implications of the study are discussed in terms of assessing the needs of battered women and their children as well as being vigilant for family violence as an etiological factor for other presenting problems.

Child Behavior Disorders↗
PubMed1996

Schooling, employment, and idleness in young adults with serious physical health conditions: effects of age, disability status, and parental education.

PURPOSE: Education, employment, and "idleness" in young adults with ongoing physical health conditions were examined in relation to parents' education and respondent's age and co-existing disabilities. METHODS: Telephone interviews were conducted with 421 individuals aged 20-24 years randomly drawn from public health programs in two midwestern states. In addition to a chronic health condition, 18% of the sample also had mental retardation, 21% also had a physical disability (but no retardation), and 11% also had a learning disability (but no mental retardation or physical disability). Youth were considered "idle" if they were not in school, not employed, not married, and had no children. RESULTS: Thirty-seven percent of the sample were enrolled in an educational program, and 48% were employed either part-time or full-time. Seventeen percent were both in school and employed, 50% were in school or employed, and 33% were neither in school nor working. Overall, 23% of the sample were idle. Youth with mental retardation were two to three times more likely to be in school compared to youth with a chronic physical condition alone. Youth with mental retardation and physical disabilities were less likely to be employed and more likely to be idle compared to youth with only a chronic condition. Parental education affected rates of schooling and employment. Compared to a general population sample of youth in the same states, youth with ongoing health problems were at higher risk for idleness. CONCLUSIONS: Youth with chronic health conditions and either mental retardation or physical disabilities are at higher risk for idleness compared to youth with a chronic condition alone or to youth in general.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Self-reported physical health among aged adults.

A multiple indicator structural equation model is proposed to delineate the various aspects of self-reported physical health. In particular, it specifies structural linkages among five measures of health including chronic illness, number of sick days, physical self-maintenance, instrumental activities of daily living, and subjective rating of one's own health. The proposed model is evaluated by using data from the 1968 National Senior Citizens Survey. The results support the predictions derived from the proposed model and are consistently replicated across four randomly divided subsamples.

Aged↗
PubMed2007

Behaviour of medical students in seeking mental and physical health care: exploration and comparison with psychology students.

CONTEXT: Doctors are often reluctant to seek health care through the usual channels and tend to self-diagnose and prescribe. Medical students learn attitudes and values from clinician role models and may also adopt behaviour patterns that lead them to seek help for physical and mental health problems from informal sources. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to explore the behaviour of students in seeking health care for physical and mental health problems, comparing medical with psychology students, and to understand what barriers to conventional routes of seeking health care may affect this. METHODS: We administered a questionnaire asking for demographic details and responses to 2 vignettes in which a student from the respondent's discipline was experiencing firstly symptoms of a mental health problem and secondly symptoms of a physical health problem. Data were analysed with spss and univariate anovas to examine differences between respondents. RESULTS: A total of 172 students at the psychology and medical schools at James Cook University in Australia participated. We identified a number of barriers affecting student behaviour in seeking help, which included worries about knowing the doctor they could consult at the university health centre or having future dealings with him or her, and cost of treatment. There were differences between the 2 groups of students. DISCUSSION: There are several barriers for both psychology and medical students to accessing appropriate professional mental health care. Medical students also experience barriers to attaining appropriate physical health care when needed. Psychology and medical students were more likely to seek advice informally from friends and/or family with regard to mental health care.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

The psychological and physical health of hospice caregivers.

This study explores the psychological distress of caring for a dying family member and examines the differences in depression, anxiety, health, social and occupational functioning, and social support among hospice caregivers and community controls. It compares psychological functioning of spousal and adult child hospice caregivers. Caregivers of terminally ill hospice patients were assessed prior to death as a part of a longitudinal bereavement study. Caregivers reported experiencing higher levels of depression, anxiety, anger, and health problems than controls. Hospice caregiving was associated with deterioration in physical health and in social and occupational functioning. The comparisons between adult children and spouse caregivers revealed that levels of psychological and physical morbidity were very similar for the two generations of caregivers. An awareness of distress symptoms among hospice caregivers could lead to timely proactive clinical intervention that may prevent bereavement complications.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Health physics challenges involved with opening a "seventeen-inch" concrete waste vault.

This paper describes the various activities involved with opening a sealed legacy "Seventeen-inch" concrete vault and the health physics challenges and solutions employed. As part of a legacy waste stream that was removed from the former Hazardous Waste Management Facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory, the "Seventeen-inch" concrete vault labeled 1-95 was moved to the new Waste Management Facility for ultimate disposal. Because the vault contained 239Pu foils with a total activity in excess of the transuranic waste limits, the foils needed to be removed and repackaged for disposal. Conventional diamond wire saws could not be used because of facility constraints, so this project relied mainly on manual techniques. The planning and engineering controls put in place enabled personnel to open the vault and remove the waste while keeping dose as low as reasonably achievable.

Decontamination↗
PubMed2004

Childhood maltreatment and mental and physical health in Haitian adults.

PURPOSE: To describe the prevalence of childhood maltreatment among Haitian adults and to examine its relationship to depression, general physical health, and quality of life. DESIGN: Descriptive exploratory. Participants were men and women 18 years of age or older who were seated in the waiting area of a hospital-based medical clinic in a medium-sized city in Haiti. The author collected these data while on a Fulbright fellowship to Haiti in 2003. METHODS: Two hundred fifty-eight participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Cohen-Hoberman Inventory of Physical Symptoms, Center for Epidemiologic Study-Depression Scale, and a visual analogue quality of life scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation, multiple regression, and Student's t test. FINDINGS: Over half (60%) of the women and 85.7% of the men reported at least one type of childhood maltreatment at the moderate to severe level. Of the total sample, 53.9% had scores indicative of major depression and 43.9% reported an average score of "somewhat bothered" by 37 physical symptoms. Childhood maltreatment (each of five types) was related to physical symptoms and depression. CONCLUSIONS: Rates of childhood maltreatment were high in this sample of Haitian adults, and their childhood maltreatment was related to physical and mental health symptoms in adulthood.

Adult↗