Laratta Stefania, Giannotti Lucia, Tonin Paolo, Calabrò Rocco Salvatore, Cerasa Antonio
S. Anna Institute, 88900 Crotone, Italy.
IRCCS Centro Neurolesi Bonino-Pulejo, 98124 Messina, Italy.
Healthcare (Basel). 2021 Mar 4;9(3):283. doi: 10.3390/healthcare9030283.
Couple relationships after acquired brain injury (ABI) could be vulnerable to emotional distress. Previous evidence has demonstrated significant marital dissatisfaction in the first period after a traumatic event, while long-term evaluations are lacking. In this study, we evaluated the impact of a series of demographic and clinical factors on marital stability after two years from the injury. Thirty-five patients (29% female) with mild/moderate ABI (57% vascular, 43% traumatic) and their partners were enrolled. The couples completed a series of psychological questionnaires assessing marital adjustment (Dyadic Adjustment Scale, DAS) and family functioning (Family Relationship Index, FRI) at discharge from the intensive rehabilitation unit and after 2 years. Demographics (i.e., educational level, job employment and religion commitment) and clinical variables (i.e., the Barthel index, aetiology and brain lesion localization) were considered as predictive factors. Regression analyses revealed that the DAS and FRI values are differently influenced by demographic and clinical factors in patients and caregivers. Indeed, the highest educational level corresponds to better DAS and FRI values for patients. In the spouses, the variability of the DAS values was explained by aetiology (the spouses of traumatic ABI patients had worse DAS values), whereas the variability in the FRI values was explained by religious commitment (spending much time on religious activities was associated with better FRI values). Our data suggest that some clinical and demographic variables might be important for protecting against marital dissatisfaction after an ABI.
后天性脑损伤（ABI）后的夫妻关系可能容易受到情绪困扰。先前的证据表明，在创伤事件后的第一阶段存在显著的婚姻不满，但缺乏长期评估。在本研究中，我们评估了一系列人口统计学和临床因素对受伤两年后婚姻稳定性的影响。招募了35例轻度/中度ABI患者（29%为女性）（57%为血管性，43%为创伤性）及其伴侣。这些夫妻在重症康复病房出院时和2年后完成了一系列心理问卷，评估婚姻调适（二元调适量表，DAS）和家庭功能（家庭关系指数，FRI）。人口统计学因素（即教育水平、就业情况和宗教信仰）和临床变量（即Barthel指数、病因和脑损伤定位）被视为预测因素。回归分析显示，患者和照料者的DAS和FRI值受人口统计学和临床因素的影响不同。事实上，最高教育水平对应着患者更好的DAS和FRI值。在配偶中，DAS值的变异性由病因解释（创伤性ABI患者的配偶DAS值较差），而FRI值的变异性由宗教信仰解释（花大量时间进行宗教活动与更好的FRI值相关）。我们的数据表明，一些临床和人口统计学变量可能对预防ABI后的婚姻不满很重要。
