Alexithymia following myocardial infarction: psychometric properties and correlates of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose was to explore the psychometrics and correlates of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) after myocardial infarction (MI).


METHODS
The TAS-20 and other self-report measures were administered 3-6 months after discharge to 1443 patients.


RESULTS
Good internal reliability was confirmed for the total TAS-20 and two subscales (F1 and F2). The F3 showed low internal consistency linked to negatively keyed items. The prevalence of alexithymia was 30.2% at the first interview. Alexithymics were older, less educated, more likely to have previous MIs and had higher scores on all measures of negative emotions. Six-month test-retest reliability was.47 (n=167). Residual change score analysis showed patients with more education and a first MI had greater decreases in alexithymia than expected.


CONCLUSIONS
The TAS-20 has adequate internal consistency in post-MI patients, and its correlates are similar to other reports. Low temporal stability suggests that secondary alexithymia is important after MI.
Kojima
M
M
Research Centre Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Frasure-Smith
N
N
Lespérance
F
F
D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D015986:Confounding Factors, Epidemiologic; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000401:mortality / Q000523:psychology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000592:standards*; D011594:Psychometrics; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data