Article

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the use of coping styles and the relationships linking
coping to emotional distress and quality of life in patients with acquired brain
injury and multiple sclerosis. METHOD: Cross-sectional cohort study of 143
patients with acquired brain injury and 310 patients with multiple sclerosis in
the chronic stage. Quality of life was measured with the Life Satisfaction
Questionnaire (LiSat-9), coping styles with the Coping Inventory for Stressful
Situations (CISS-T, task-oriented; CISS-E, emotion-oriented; CISS-A, avoidance),
emotional distress with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS).
RESULTS: Coping styles did not differ between types of multiple sclerosis and
varied only little with regard to severity of disease. In both patient groups,
task-oriented coping was most used followed by avoidance and emotion-oriented
coping. Patients with multiple sclerosis used all styles to a greater extent. In
acquired brain injury, lower CISS-E and lower HADS scores were associated with
higher LiSat-9 scores. CISS-E had a direct effect on LiSat-9 and an indirect
effect via HADS. In multiple sclerosis, next to lower CISS-E and lower HADS
scores, higher CISS-A scores were also associated with higher LiSat-9 scores.
CISS-E had an indirect effect and CISS-A had a direct and indirect effect on
LiSat-9. CONCLUSION: In both patient groups, coping patterns are similar, and
emotion-oriented coping negatively influences quality of life. Additionally, in
multiple sclerosis, seeking emotional support and distraction (CISS-A) was
positively associated with quality of life. Interventions to improve adaptive
coping could be organized within a neurorehabilitation setting for both patient
groups together.

Langue : ANGLAIS