Effect of bereavement on the health of the remaining family members.
This investigation focuses on the effect of the death of a family member on the number and type of diagnosed illnesses of the remaining members. The data on mortality and morbidity were obtained from a continuous morbidity register. A total of 225 cases of death were selected, involving 313 family members. A control group of 4909 people who had not been confronted with a death of a family member were selected. A comparison of morbidity rates for the two groups showed that morbidity rates, both for minor and serious illnesses, were affected by the death of a family member. Increases in minor illnesses occurred more often when people had been confronted with death after a chronic illness; increases in serious illnesses were mainly found among people confronted with sudden death. Surprisingly, people with nervous disorders in their medical history showed fewer diagnoses for minor illnesses after a sudden death of a family member. An explanation may be found in the basic principles of family medicine.
Van Eijk
J
J
Department of General Practice, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
Smits
A
A
Huygen
F
F
van den Hoogen
H
H
D001293:Attitude to Death; D001601:Bereavement; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003645:Death, Sudden; D005190:Family; D005192:Family Health; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D009017:Morbidity