title: Psychological resilience and depressive symptoms in older adults diagnosed with post-polio syndrome.
abstract: Depression is a serious comorbidity in people with disabilities; however, few studies have focused on depressive symptoms in older adults with post-polio syndrome (PPS). This study used a resilience conceptual framework that focused on patient psychosocial strengths to investigate the relationship between psychological resilience factors (e.g., acceptance, self-efficacy, personal resources, interpersonal relationships, self-rated health, spiritual growth, stress management) and depressive symptoms in a large sample (N = 630) of people older than 65 years who were diagnosed with PPS. Forty percent of the sample scored > or = 10 on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Short Depression Scale (CES-D10), which is a higher percentage than what has been previously cited in other studies; however, 53% of the sample had good or excellent self-rated health, suggesting psychological resilience. Depression scores were regressed on seven selected resilience factors after controlling for functional limitations. Four of the seven variables accounted for 30% of the variance in depressive symptoms, with spiritual growth representing the main predictor (beta = -.26). The implications for rehabilitation nurses in developing a patient-strengths perspective in the assessment and counseling of older adults with PPS are discussed.
authors.affiliation: University of Texas at Austin, School of Nursing, Austin, TX, USA. dianapierini@utexas.edu
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pierini
authors.forename: Alexa K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Stuifbergen
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living / Q000523:psychology; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D016262:Postpoliomyelitis Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012044:Regression Analysis; D019145:Rehabilitation Nursing; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D012307:Risk Factors; D012648:Self Care / Q000379:methods / Q000523:psychology; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D029181:Spirituality; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology