title: Peripheral Facial Palsy: Does Patients' Religiousness Matter for the Otorhinolaryngologist?
abstract: In order to deal with the suffering, a frequent strategy employed by patients is the use of religious beliefs and behaviors. Nevertheless, few studies in otorhinolaryngology have investigated this dimension. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the role of religiousness on quality of life, mental health, self-esteem and appearance in 116 patients with peripheral facial palsy (PFP). A cross-sectional, single-center study was carried out between 2010 and 2012 in PFP outpatients. We assessed socio-demographic data, PFP characteristics, depression, anxiety, quality of life, self-esteem, appearance and religiosity. A linear regression (adjusted for confounders) was performed to investigate whether religiosity was associated with any outcomes. The present study found that religious attendance, but not other types of religiousness, was related to quality of life and mental health on PFP patients. In addition, ENT patients would like their doctors to ask them about their faith and religion as part of their medical care. These findings give further support to the importance of religious and spiritual beliefs on ENT patients. Otorhinolaryngologists should be aware of the positive and negative aspects of religion and be prepared to address these issues in clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Juiz De Fora, Brazil. g.lucchetti@yahoo.com.br.|, Avenida Eugênio do Nascimento s/n, Dom Bosco, Subsolo 1, CEP: 36038-330, Juiz De Fora, Brazil. g.lucchetti@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lucchetti
authors.affiliation: University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Janaina
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: De Rossi
authors.affiliation: University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Juliane P B
authors.initials: JPB
authors.lastname: Gonçalves
authors.affiliation: Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Juiz De Fora, Brazil.
authors.forename: Alessandra L Granero
authors.initials: ALG
authors.lastname: Lucchetti
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005158:Facial Paralysis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010036:Otolaryngology / Q000379:methods*; D010820:Physicians; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012068:Religion and Medicine
keywords: Anxiety; Peripheral facial palsy; Quality of life; Religion and medicine; Spirituality