Tag: interpersonal life-style

Unexplained chronic fatigue and interpersonal problems: a study in a primary care population

Abstract:

OBJECTIVE: Unexplained fatigue syndromes are multidimensional phenomena that involve a constellation of symptoms. This article explores whether typical interpersonal problems are associated with self-reported and clinically-rated fatigue symptoms in chronically fatigued patients. We hypothesize that the severity of fatigue symptoms will be associated with a pattern of withdrawal from social interaction.

METHOD: Interpersonal problems were assessed by means of a self-report questionnaire. Chronic fatigue was assessed with a self-report questionnaire (both self-rated and clinically-rated) in a primary care Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) group (N = 52) and compared with two other clinical populations (minor medical condition: N = 51; chronic organic disease: N = 52).

RESULTS: Compared to patients with a minor medical condition, CFS patients are substantially more fatigued and more socially withdrawn. Compared to patients with a chronic organic disease, somewhat more fatigue-related disability was observed in CFS patients, but no distinct interpersonal problems came to the fore. CFS patients and physicians proved to differ in their opinion on the patient’s motivation. In line with the hypothesis, self-rated and clinically-scored fatigue problems proved to be related to a pattern of withdrawal from social interaction.

CONCLUSION: Differences between physicians’ and patients in how symptoms are interpreted might be related to patients feeling misunderstood and result in social withdrawal.

 

Source: Vandenbergen J, Vanheule S, Desmet M, Verhaeghe P. Unexplained chronic fatigue and interpersonal problems: a study in a primary care population. Int J Psychiatry Med. 2009;39(3):325-40. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19967903

 

Psychosocial correlates of illness burden in chronic fatigue syndrome

Abstract:

We related reported physical symptoms, cognitive appraisals (e.g., negative style of thinking), and coping strategies (e.g., denial/disengagement strategies) with illness burden across several functional domains separately in subsets of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients with (n = 26) and without (n = 39) concurrently diagnosed major depressive disorder (MDD).

In regard to cognitive appraisal measures, automatic thoughts and dysfunctional attitudes were strongly associated with a higher illness burden, as indicated in sickness impact profile (SIP) scores. Active-involvement coping strategies measured on COPE scales (active coping, planning, and positive reinterpretation and growth) were not associated with SIP scores, while other coping strategies (mental disengagement, behavioral disengagement, and denial) were positively correlated with psychosocial and physical SIP scales, especially those pertaining to interpersonal life-style arenas.

After we accounted for the number of different CFS-specific physical complaints reported and DSM-III-R depression diagnosis status, cognitive appraisals and coping strategies predicted a substantial proportion of the variance in the severity of illness burden. For the most part, the magnitude of these relationships between our predictor model variables and illness burden severity was similar in the MDD and non-MDD subgroups.

 

Source: Antoni MH, Brickman A, Lutgendorf S, Klimas N, Imia-Fins A, Ironson G, Quillian R, Miguez MJ, van Riel F, Morgan R, et al. Psychosocial correlates of illness burden in chronic fatigue syndrome. Clin Infect Dis. 1994 Jan;18 Suppl 1:S73-8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8148457