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PubMedDate not supplied

Religious coping and depression among spouses of people with lung cancer.

A cancer diagnosis frequently activates a range of coping responses in patients and their spouses and may affect their emotional well-being. The authors hypothesized a curvilinear relationship between religious coping and depression in 156 spouses of lung cancer patients. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted with blocks of variables entered as follows: demographic characteristics; cancer stage; perceived control, self-efficacy, and social support; religious coping (linear); and religious coping squared (quadratic). There was a significant association between religious coping squared and depression. Spouses who used moderate levels of religious coping were rated as less depressed than those who used lower or higher levels.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2002

Spouses' experiences in heart transplantation.

In this phenomenological study, in-depth interviews were used to obtain a description of spouses' experiences in heart transplantation. Thematic analysis of the transcripts revealed four major, interrelated themes: death-life, vigilance, change, and gift. The experience was contextualized by the existential grounds of time and other people. Findings suggested that the changes inherent in the transplant experience have not been fully described in previous studies. The theme of death-life was dominant and pervasive in all interviews. As the threat of their husbands' deaths became less prominent, wives reported difficulty letting go of their vigilance. Although the most outstanding gift was that of the donor organ, spouses also gratefully remembered the donor and donor family. Time was not perceived as a boundary separating periods of the transplant experience; all aspects of time seemed to be woven seamlessly from the past through the present and into the future. Spouses were adamant that health care personnel should recognize them as coparticipants in the critical life event of cardiac transplantation.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Synchronous breast cancer in spouses.

Breast cancer in both spouses is extremely rare. There are 7 metachronous cases and 1 synchronous case in the English literature. No case has been reported in which 1 of the spouses had bilateral breast cancer. In this paper, we report a synchronous pair of cases where 1 of the spouses (wife) had bilateral breast cancer and the other (husband) had breast cancer.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1996

Hope-inspiring strategies of spouses of critically ill adults.

Previous research indicates that hope is an important psychosocial need of families of intensive care unit (ICU) patients. However, there is a lack of nursing research about how to inspire hope in families of the critically ill. The purpose of this study was to explore the hope-inspiring strategies that spouses of critically ill adults used while their family member was critically ill. In addition, the author explored what spouses of critically ill persons perceived to be useful sources in maintaining or increasing their hope states while their loved one was critically ill. Utilizing a qualitative methodology, 20 spouses of patients hospitalized in an ICU for the first time were interviewed. Data was categorized into eight hope-inspiring themes, including spiritual religious activities, significant others, devotion for the patient, positive relationship with caregivers, physical presence at the bedside, talking to others, and the use of distraction mechanisms. In addition, five sources of hope were identified in this population.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1995

Mental and physical health of male caregivers of a spouse with Alzheimer's disease.

Fifty-two male spouse caregivers of patients with Alzheimer's disease and 53 demographically equated controls completed multidimensional assessments of mental and physical health. Results indicate that compared with noncaregiving men, male spouse caregivers have poorer mental and physical health, but only within limited domains of health outcomes. In particular, caregiving men showed higher levels of depression, respiratory system symptoms, and poorer levels of health habits, but did not differ from noncaregiving men on other indexes of physical and mental health. The importance of focusing on understudied specific subgroups of caregivers, such as male spouses, as well as using multidimensional instead of summary measures of mental and physical health are emphasized.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

The impact of a spouse-caregiver support group on care recipient health care costs.

Frail elderly veterans who received care at a Department of Veterans Affairs medical center and whose spouse-caregivers participated in support groups to which they had been randomly assigned had lower health care costs over a 1-year period than did control participants. The greatest impact was observed for participants perceived by their spouse-caregivers to be in the poorest health. What is important to consider about this result in terms of health care policymaking is that support groups targeted for spouse-caregivers of elderly veterans in poor health produced significant outpatient, inpatient, and total cost savings for the care recipients, and were cost effective.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Desire for control, coping, and quality of life in heart and lung transplant candidates, recipients, and spouses: a pilot study.

To understand the interdependence of couples involved in transplantation, both partners need to be included in the same study. This pilot study explored the desire for control, coping, and quality of life in heart and lung transplant candidates, recipients, and spouses, using McCubbin's Double ABCX Model as the conceptual basis. Sixty letters were mailed to randomly selected candidates and recipients at 2 transplant centers. Twenty-five couples completed a demographic sheet and the following surveys: the Desire for Control Scale, the Family Crisis Oriented Personal Evaluation Scale, and the Quality of Life Index. There were 9 pretransplant and 16 posttransplant couples. Analyses included measures of central tendency, analysis of variance, t tests, and correlations. There were statistically significant differences between pretransplant patients' quality of life and all other groups. There were moderate correlations between several patient and spouse variables. It was recommended that healthcare professionals include both patients and spouses when planning interventions.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2000

Stress and coping in spouses of persons with spinal cord injuries.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the sources of stress and the patterns of coping of spouses of persons with spinal cord injuries (SCI) among Hong Kong Chinese. DESIGN: A cross-sectional correlation design. A set of structured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were administered. SUBJECTS: Forty spouses of persons with SCI were recruited and interviewed. OUTCOME MEASURES: These included coping strategies, depression, care-giving burden, life satisfaction and marital adjustment. RESULTS: The most stressful situations reported by the participants concerned health issues of their injured partners, the family and marital interactions, and the care-giving burden imposed on them. Cluster analysis indicated a potential at-risk group, characterized by high scores in external locus of control, inadequate coping modes and limited social support. They were noted to manifest high levels of depression, care-giving burden, low levels of life satisfaction and marital adjustment. CONCLUSION: The identification of the potential at-risk group indicates that spouses of persons with SCI suffer levels of stress comparable to those of their injured partners. Rehabilitation plans should include this potential at-risk group to help them release the stress and to prevent them from developing clinically significant mental disorders.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1998

Quality of life of cancer patients and their spouses in palliative home care.

Incurable ill cancer patients (n = 37) and their spouses, while receiving support from a hospital-based palliative service, were assessed monthly regarding quality of life, using the assessment of quality of life at the end of life instrument. Lowest ratings for patients during the final six weeks were found in the following items: ability to do what one wants, physical strength, global quality of life, and meaningfulness. The pain situation was stable over time. Generally, patients were less anxious than spouses. The least-optimal items at the end of life for the patients' partners were: ability to leave the patients unattended, need for assistance with hygiene/dressing and anxiety. Meaningfulness was the item with the strongest correlation to global quality of life, for both patients and spouses. A more ambitious approach to the existential domain appears to be essential if we wish to optimize quality of life for patients within palliative care.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2003

How do female and male cardiac patients and their spouses share responsibilities after discharge from the hospital?

This study explored sex differences in household and employment responsibilities among cardiac patients (N = 63; 46 men) and spouses during the 5 months following discharge from the hospital. Results showed that both patients and partners maintained traditional sex-typed activities. As patients or spouses, women tended to assume greater responsibility for domestic tasks such as laundry, cleaning, and cooking than their husbands. Men as patients or spouses tended to assume greater responsibility for household repair and maintenance tasks. Husbands also worked more for pay outside the home than did wives, except in couples where the male patient was high risk. Correlations for male patients indicated that reports of more cardiac symptoms were associated with assuming fewer responsibilities. In contrast, among women, the correlations between symptoms and activities were more complex and suggested that female patients might not be heeding signs of overexertion.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2000

Lay theories of successful aging after the death of a spouse: a network text analysis of bereavement advice.

Social theories of successful aging attempt to explain how individuals adapt to changes characteristically associated with aging and to predict whether older adults' adaptations will lead to successful aging. The death of a spouse and the accompanying bereavement process entail dramatic changes to personal networks and experience to which individuals must adapt to age successfully. Network text analysis (including word frequencies, cluster analysis, and multidimensional scaling) of advice for adjusting to, and coping with, the loss of a spouse given by a sample of 60 bereaved spouses (mean age = 68) at 6 points in time after the death of their marital partner (3-4 weeks to 24 months) reveal respondents' lay theories of successful aging. Thematic clusters address social positioning and qualifiers, activity, communication, time, and spousal characteristics. Results indicate respondents frame their advice as unique to their context of social relationships while providing support for activity theory and negatively addressing disengagement theory.

Aged↗
PubMed2006

Fatal neglect of the elderly by a spouse: a case report.

Neglect is one of the most common forms of elder abuse, along with physical and psychological abuse. It is defined as an elderly person alone who is not able to provide for him or herself the services necessary to maintain physical and mental health, or who is not receiving those services from a responsible carer. We present an unusual case of neglect where a 69-year-old diabetic man was left lying on the ground by his spouse after a sudden fall from a cerebral stroke. The man was not able to move or to get up and his spouse, unable to lift him up, did not seek help. Although the victim's spouse reported having taking care of him, the man died four days later from a fatal hyperglycaemia.

Accidental Falls↗
PubMed2006

[Which kinds of distress do partners or spouses of cardiac arrhythmias patients exhibit?].

OBJECTIVES: Partners or spouses of patients with cardiac arrhythmias were examined for mental and physical health. In addition, gender differences and other influential factors of well-being were analyzed. METHODS: A total of 486 partners or spouses took part in a study which collected data on anxiety and depression (HADS-D) as well as quality of life (SF-12). The situation of the partners was correlated with social variables, psychological distress, and the physical and mental well-being of the patients. RESULTS: Pathological anxiety was reported by 20 percent of the partners and 37 percent demonstrated notable values for depression. In comparison to healthy samples quality of life was diminished, especially in male subjects. There was a strong inter-connection between the patient's psychological strain and that of his or her partner. Most important for the partner's physical quality of life was the patient's quality of life (18.4% explained variance). The partner's mental well-being was determined by his or her own psychological distress (31.1% explained variance). CONCLUSION: Spouses and partners of patients with cardiac arrhythmias are highly impaired in their psychological well-being. This should be taken into account when dealing with medical care issues in such patients. It is therefore important to inform patients and their families in detail about the potential risks as well as the options for relatives' responses in arrhythmia-induced emergencies.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Group rehabilitation of middle-aged males with noise-induced hearing loss and their spouses: evaluation of short- and long-term effects.

This study aims at evaluating the short- and long-term effects of a group rehabilitation programme, designed for males with noise-induced hearing loss and their spouses. The rehabilitation programme, including four 3 h group sessions per week, intended to offer adequate information, psychosocial support and training in effective coping strategies. Fifty-three males were consecutively selected and randomly divided into an experimental and a control group. Twenty-seven males were invited to participate in the group sessions together with their spouses. Although an informed consent to participate was given by the males initially, 15 couples (55.6%) refused to participate, and 12 couples agreed to participate in the group sessions. The short-term effects of the programme showed that the couples felt supported by meeting other couples in the same position. Further, the spouses' awareness of the effects of the hearing impairment was increased, which facilitated the understanding of problems related to their husbands' hearing disability. A reduction in perceived handicap, measured by the handicap sections of the Hearing Measurement Scale (P = 0.017) and by the disability/handicap factor of the Hearing Handicap and Support scale (P = 0.054), was found immediately after the rehabilitation programme in the participants compared to the controls. Four months later, no significant difference in any of the variables measured was found. Interestingly, both from a short-term and a long-term perspective, the drop-outs from the experimental group (n = 15) scored significantly higher on perceived handicap (P = 0.034 and P = 0.031, respectively) compared to the participants in the group rehabilitation programme.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1994

Ill health in spouses of psychiatric patients: cause or consequence?

1. In the literature on the marital relationship of psychiatric patients it often has been reported that the healthy spouses may show a considerable degree of psychological distress. 2. A correlation of psychiatric disorders in married couples commonly has been interpreted according to two models: assortative mating and pathogenic interaction, neither of which can sufficiently explain the spousal psychiatric illness correlation. 3. The issue of psychiatric illness in the spouses of patients merits more attention from both researchers and clinicians. A psychiatric illness in one spouse must be understood within the ongoing interaction of the marital relationship.

Humans↗
PubMed2004

Experience of gastric cancer survivors and their spouses in Korea: secondary analysis.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of gastric cancer couples in Korea and to generate a substantive theory integrating the experiences of gastric cancer survivors and their spouses as a whole. The specific aims of this study were to explore major problems gastric cancer couples faced and how they resolved these problems, focusing on inter-relational dynamics within the couples and on similarities and differences between the couples. METHODS: This was a secondary analysis study using grounded theory techniques. The study used the data of 11 married couples which was collected from in-depth interviews from two primary studies. The unit of analysis was dyads of gastric cancer survivors and their spouses. RESULT: The basic social psychological process that emerged from the analysis was "taking charge of their health." Major categories involved in this process were identified as 1) adjusting to new diets, 2) reinforcing physical strength, 3) seeking information, 4) strengthening Ki, 5) lowering life-expectations, and 6) going their separate ways. These six categories represent major strategies in overcoming critical problems that occurred in day-to-day experiences. In terms of the process, the first five categories characterize the earlier stage of the process of "taking charge of their health," while "going their separate ways" indicates the later stage and also the beginning of their separate ways: "pursuing spiritual life" for the survivors, and "preparing for the future" for the spouses. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study will help design family care for the people with gastric cancer by providing in-depth understanding and insight on the lives of gastric cancer couples.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1999

[A case report of heterosexual transmission of HIV infection between spouses with persistent condom use].

OBJECTIVE: To report a case of heterosexual transmission of HIV infection between spouses with consistent condom use. METHODS: The first case with HIV infection was detected in the contracted male workers returned from abroad in Qingdao in 1992 and both he and his spouse were given health education for AIDS/HIV prevention and instructions on condom use. And, his wife was followed-up every six months by detecting her serum anti-HIV. RESULTS: The wife of the index case was negative for anti-HIV in the first 12 blood tests before December 1996. But, she was found suspect of positive for anti-HIV an July 1997 and definitely positive for anti-HIV-1 in August 1997 during her 14th test. In the period of 1992 to 1997, they persisted in condom use during intercourse. Recall of the wife showed that she had low fever in May 1997, suggesting at the window phase of her acute HIV infection. It postulated that she infected with HIV curing March to April 1997. CONCLUSION: The case report indicated that incorrect use of condom could not prevent from HIV transmission between spouses.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Increased risk of infection with Helicobacter pylori in spouses of infected subjects: observations in a general population sample from the UK.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: To investigate risk factors for infection with Helicobacter pylori in a general population sample who accepted an invitation to be screened. In particular, to determine whether being the spouse of an infected subject is an independent risk factor for infection after adjustment for other risks. METHODOLOGY: A serological screening test for Helicobacter pylori was offered to 4015 randomly selected subjects registered at a single general practice in Market Harborough, UK. Those invited were also asked to complete a questionnaire if attending for screening; this included information relating to possible risk factors for infection. Results were analyzed in the overall sample of attenders and a subset of married couples, using univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Complete results were obtained for 1431 (36%) subjects. Age, childhood social class and household crowding in childhood were independent risk factors after adjustment for other variables. Positive status of spouse was an independent risk factor in a subset of 389 married couples (P = 0.005, Odds Ratio: 2.65, 95% Confidence Interval: 1.34-5.25). CONCLUSIONS: Our study confirmed the correlation between childhood living conditions and infection with Helicobacter pylori. In the study population, having a Helicobacter pylori-positive spouse was associated with a significant increased risk of being infected.

Adult↗