title: Psychological distress and intensive care unit stay after cardiac surgery: The role of illness concern.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the association between psychological factors and length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay in patients undergoing elective coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied 212 adults undergoing CABG surgery preoperatively to assess depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and illness perceptions and then followed them up during the in-hospital stay to measure length of ICU stay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Greater preoperative concern about the illness (B = .200, 95% CI [.094, .305], p = < .001), but not depression or anxiety symptoms, was significantly related to longer ICU stays after controlling for demographic, clinical, and behavioral covariates.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Illness concern may be particularly relevant for CABG recovery, though more work is needed to delineate the exact mechanisms of this effect.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health.
authors.forename: Lydia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Poole
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health.
authors.forename: Tara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kidd
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Leigh
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health.
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ronaldson
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiac Surgery, St George's Hospital, University of London.
authors.forename: Marjan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jahangiri
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Public Health.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Steptoe
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology*; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000523:psychology*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D057234:Preoperative Period; D012307:Risk Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*