Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA.
J Relig Health. 2012 Dec;51(4):1124-36. doi: 10.1007/s10943-010-9419-7.
Heart failure (HF) is a chronic progressive disease with marked morbidity and mortality. Patients enduring this condition suffer from fluctuations in symptom burden such as fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pain, sexual dysfunction, dramatic changes in body image and depression. As physicians, we often ask patients to trust in our ability to ameliorate their symptoms, but oftentimes we do not hold all of the answers, and our best efforts are only modestly effective. The suffering endured by these individuals and their families may even call into question one's faith in a higher power and portends to significant spiritual struggle. In the face of incurable and chronic physical conditions, it seems logical that patients would seek alternative or ancillary methods, notably spiritual ones, to improve their ability to deal with their condition. Although difficult to study, spirituality has been evaluated and deemed to have a beneficial effect on multiple measures including global quality of life, depression and medical compliance in the treatment of patients with HF. The model of HF treatment incorporates a multidisciplinary approach. This should involve coordination between primary care, cardiology, palliative care, nursing, patients and, importantly, individuals providing psychosocial as well as spiritual support. This review intends to outline the current understanding and necessity of spirituality's influence on those suffering from HF.
心力衰竭（HF）是一种慢性进行性疾病，发病率和死亡率都很高。患有这种疾病的患者会经历症状负担的波动，如疲劳、呼吸急促、胸痛、性功能障碍、身体形象的急剧变化和抑郁。作为医生，我们经常要求患者相信我们有能力改善他们的症状，但我们往往并不掌握所有的答案，我们的努力也只是适度有效。这些患者及其家人所承受的痛苦甚至可能让人对更高的力量产生质疑，并预示着他们会经历巨大的精神斗争。面对无法治愈和慢性的身体状况，患者似乎会寻求替代或辅助方法，尤其是精神方法，以提高他们应对病情的能力，这似乎是合乎逻辑的。尽管很难研究，但已经评估了精神信仰，并认为它对包括整体生活质量、抑郁和 HF 患者治疗中的医疗依从性在内的多项指标都有有益的影响。HF 治疗模式采用多学科方法。这应包括初级保健、心脏病学、姑息治疗、护理、患者之间的协调，以及重要的是，为患者提供社会心理和精神支持的个人之间的协调。这篇综述旨在概述目前对 HF 患者的精神信仰影响的理解和必要性。
