title: The presence and impact of stress reactions on disability among patients with arm injury.
abstract: This study explores the prevalence and types of stress reactions and their impact on self-perceived disability among arm-hand-injured patients. It tested the null hypothesis that there is no correlation between stress reactions after traumatic hand injury and arm-specific disability. In a prospective cohort of 24 patients, stress reactions were measured using the Impact of Events Scale-Revised (IES-R), and arm-specific disability was measured using the QuickDASH, an average of 7.5 months (range: 1.5-33 months) after injury. Type of injury, length of time since injury, and gender did not influence scores on the IES-R or the QuickDASH. The IES-R subscales of intrusion and hyperarousal correlated with QuickDASH scores (intrusion: r=0.57, p=0.004; hyperarousal: r=0.45, p=0.029). These findings suggest that the patient may require attention to learn how to engage in the therapy process while experiencing stress reactions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational Therapy, NYU Steinhardt, New York, New York 10012, USA. jbl285@nyu.edu
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bear-Lehman
authors.forename: Sally E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Poole
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001134:Arm Injuries / Q000523:psychology* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology