title: A picture paints a thousand words: Heart drawings reflect acute distress and illness perception and predict posttraumatic stress symptoms after acute myocardial infarction.
abstract: The aim of this study was to examine whether heart drawings of patients with acute myocardial infarction reflect acute distress symptoms and negative illness beliefs and predict posttraumatic stress symptoms 3 months post-myocardial infarction. In total, 84 patients aged over 18 years drew pictures of their heart. The larger the area drawn as damaged, the greater were the levels of acute distress (r= 0.36;p< 0.05), negative illness perceptions (r= 0.42,p< 0.05), and posttraumatic stress symptoms (r= 0.54,p< 0.01). Pain drawings may offer a tool to identify maladaptive cognitions and thus patients at risk of posttraumatic stress disorder.
authors.affiliation: Inselspital-University Hospital of Bern, Switzerland; University of Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Princip
authors.affiliation: Inselspital-University Hospital of Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Miriam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koemeda
authors.affiliation: Inselspital-University Hospital of Bern, Switzerland; University of Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Rebecca E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Meister
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Jürgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Barth
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Schnyder
authors.affiliation: University of Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Hansjörg
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Znoj
authors.affiliation: Tiefenauspital-University Hospital of Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Jean-Paul
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Schmid
authors.affiliation: Inselspital-University Hospital of Bern, Switzerland; University of Bern, Switzerland; Clinic Barmelweid, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: von Känel
keywords: drawings; illness perceptions; myocardial infarction; psychological stress; traumatic stress