Religious and spiritual beliefs in stroke rehabilitation.

Faith could dampen Post-Stroke Depression (PSD), which may negatively influence recovery. The present pilot study is an initial examination of the role of religion and spirituality on the functional recovery after a recent stroke. Data were analyzed from 112 consecutive stroke inpatients, who underwent a 2-month standard rehabilitation program. All participants received the Royal Free Interview (RFI), a semi-structured interview for religious and spiritual beliefs, and were assessed on their mood with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Functional status was measured by means of the Functional Independence Measure (FIM). The relationship between religious beliefs, mood improvements, and functional recovery was explored by means of a multiple linear regression. No association between faith and recovery of functional independence could be verified, neither religiousness as a "coping strategy" was associated with functional recovery in this study. An explorative study of a larger size, which also takes into consideration the cultural background and religious beliefs of all patients, is warranted in the longterm.

Quality of life after stroke in a rehabilitation setting.

The perceived Quality of Life (QOL) was evaluated in one-hundred and eleven participants after a first-ever stroke, who were admitted in a rehabilitation center and completed a 2-month program. The World Health Organization (WHO) QOL-100 was applied. Two domains were correlated with the functional status at discharge, namely, the level of independence and the social relations. The study confirmed the strong correlation between the functional status at admission and at discharge. Other predictive parameters of outcome were age and depression. The functional improvement was highly significant (p < 0.0001) at Wilcoxon test (40 points at functional independence measure (FIM) scale). The gain was gender-independent. Nevertheless, among females, a significant correlation was found between the FIM score at discharge and either distress value at Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) or QOL. In conclusion, the perceived QOL should be considered by a stroke rehabilitative team.

Possible influence of spiritual and religious beliefs on hypertension.

Religious and spiritual beliefs are beneficial in stroke patients as coping strategies. This work has investigated the feeling of people about it by proposing to 174 volunteers aged 54.0 +/- 16.9 years the Royal Free Interview (RFI). Interviewed subjects considered the beliefs beneficial for health independently of their form. Ascertaining the pre-morbid understanding of life in subjects at risk of hypertension may be useful to verify self-confidence and coping possibilities against anger, fear, and stress, factors that may exert a negative effect.

Can faith protect from emotional distress after stroke?

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Emotional distress is common in the aftermath of stroke and can impact negatively on the outcome. The study was aimed at evaluating whether religious beliefs can protect from emotional distress. METHODS: Data were collected from 132 consecutive inpatients who were hospitalized for stroke rehabilitation and met the research requirements. At admission all study participants received a semi-structured interview on religious beliefs (Royal Free Interview for religious and spiritual beliefs) and were assessed on their mood with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The relationship between religious beliefs and mood was explored, adjusting for possible confounders. RESULTS: Subjects with over-threshold Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale scores had significantly lower Royal Free Interview scores (odds ratio, 0.95; CI, 92 to 98). The direction and magnitude of the association did not change after adjusting for possible confounders (odds ratio, 0.95; CI, 91 to 98). The same pattern was observed when analyzing separately Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale anxiety and depression subscales. The other significant variable was functional dependence. CONCLUSIONS: The strength of religious beliefs influences the ability to cope after a stroke event, with stronger religious beliefs acting as a possible protective factor against emotional distress.

Italian validation of the Royal Free Interview for Religious and Spiritual Beliefs.

Interest in the relevance of religion and spirituality to medicine is growing and concerns the possible association between religiousness, spirituality and well-being. In the rehabilitation field these factors may affect outcome. We translated the "Royal Free Interview for Religious and Spiritual Beliefs" into Italian and validated the Italian language version. The translation the Royal Free Interview was accomplished in several steps. Certain adaptations were necessary in order to take into account certain peculiarities of the Italian language and of the Italian-speaking world. The Italian translation presented in this study shows internal consistency: Cronbach's alpha coefficient 0.82 (spiritual scale) and 0.80 (philosophical scale) in the 53 healthy volunteers; alpha coefficient 0.79 (spiritual scale) and 0.64 (philosophical scale) in the stroke patients. Test-retest reliability, evaluated by means of the intraclass correlation coefficient, was 0.83 (spiritual scale) and 0.99 (philosophical scale). There are two main reasons why an Italian translation of a religious coping scale was deemed necessary: i) there is a growing awareness of the possible impact of faith on stress and on the outcome of many disabling diseases; ii) Italy has a large and aging population and thus a high prevalence of disabled patients.