title: Do negative aspects of social relations influence fatigue? A cross-sectional study on a non-clinical sample of middle-aged Danish men.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Fatigue is a common complaint among young and old adults and may be associated with negative aspects of social relations. Hence, the purpose of this study was to explore the association between demands from and conflicts with different sources of social relations and fatigue.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was based on sub-populations of the 6292 members of the Danish Metropolit Cohort. The cohort comprises men born in 1953 in the Copenhagen Metropolitan area who participated in a questionnaire survey in 2004. Data were analysed using χ(2)-tests and multivariable logistic regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results showed that demands from and conflicts with children were independently associated with fatigue in a dose-response pattern. The adjusted odds ratio for fatigue was 1.48 (95% CI: 1.01-2.17) when the men experienced frequent demands from children and 1.89 (95% CI: 1.17-3.06) when they had frequent conflicts with their children. Crude analyses of demands from or conflicts with spouse, relatives or friends, respectively showed associations with fatigue compared to no demands or no conflicts. However, adjustment for depression and physical chronic disease cancelled out these associations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We concluded that middle-aged Danish men, who had frequent negative social interactions with their children, more frequently experienced fatigue. However, negative social interactions with spouse, relatives or friends were not associated with fatigue.
authors.affiliation: Section of Social Medicine, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. anek@sund.ku.dk
authors.forename: Anette
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ekmann
authors.forename: Kirsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Avlund
authors.forename: Merete
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Osler
authors.forename: Rikke
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lund
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003718:Denmark; D005219:Father-Child Relations; D005221:Fatigue / Q000523:psychology*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012919:Social Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires