The evidence that depression affects post-coronary prognosis is growing and depression is a powerful independent predictor of mortality and morbidity. Therefore, decreasing a risk for depression should be addressed as the leading issue in the recovery process for patients with Acute Coronary Events(ACE). This study compared 50 male and 50 female survivors over one month period after ACE. The study finding shows that men and women survivors appear to be different in experiencing symptoms of depression. Information that contributes to an understanding of why female survivors seem to have more depressive symptoms than male in their post ACE life is especially crucial to health care providers who work closely with them. Although quality of recovery after ACE may be affected by several factors, subjectivity in appraisal of interpreting and responding to ACE might be able to provide a critical way to explain the individual variations in experiencing depression seen among survivors. Thus, this study is to examine the concept of resilient coping capacity (RCC), or how one views their cardiac event and its meaning, and its relationship to depression. This study uses a longitudinal design to test changes in RCC and depression prior to hospital discharge and one month post-hospitalization. Key variables in this study are derived from major components in well-established theories, Transactional Model of Stress and Coping (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) and Theory of Sense of Coherence (Antonovsky, 1979). These two theories underpin the flow of the phenomena that emphasize cognitive functions in mediating the significance of perceived threat from the life-threatening experience with ACE. The findings from this study suggest individualized approach with better understanding of gender differences in interventions to promote their psychological health and coping after a cardiac event.
Session #1219 - Poster Session I
The 29th Annual MNRS Research Conference (April 1-4, 2005)