Interactive model of women's stressors, personality traits and health problems

Theories have linked various stressors with health problems, and some studies have identified personality traits that enhance health. However, few studies have examined the interaction among women's stressors, personality traits and their health. This retrospective study (1996-1997) analysed the effects of women's major stressors and personality traits on symptoms of health problems, and developed a model of women's health based on the interaction among these factors. A convenience sample of 300 women aged between 18 and 66 years completed a questionnaire that measured three types of stressors, eight personality traits and 40 symptoms of health problems. Principle components and factor analyses identified the best items to measure the stressors, traits and problems. New reduced data subsets were constructed for classification tree analyses to identify the effects of stressors and personality traits on women's health. Women with medium or high stressors and low assertiveness, low hardiness, or the inability to express their feelings, were more likely to report physical symptoms than women who were stronger in these personality traits. Also, women with medium or high stressors and low to medium trust or love relationships were very likely to report high emotional symptoms, as were women with high trust or love, who did not express their feelings. An interactive model of women's health was supported. The amount of women's stressors and their personality traits may increase or diminish their stress response and affect their health. Nurses can identify women with high stressors and unhealthy personality traits that increase their risk for stress-related illnesses, and assist these women to modify their stressors or personality traits to enhance their health.     

Making a bad thing worse: adverse effects of stress on drug addiction

Sustained exposure to various psychological stressors can exacerbate neuropsychiatric disorders, including drug addiction. Addiction is a chronic brain disease in which individuals cannot control their need for drugs, despite negative health and social consequences. The brains of addicted individuals are altered and respond very differently to stress than those of individuals who are not addicted. In this Review, we highlight some of the common effects of stress and drugs of abuse throughout the addiction cycle. We also discuss both animal and human studies that suggest treating the stress-related aspects of drug addiction is likely to be an important contributing factor to a long-lasting recovery from this disorder.     

Stress, loneliness, and depression in Taiwanese rural community-dwelling elders

This study examined the stressors and stress levels, loneliness, and depression experienced by Taiwanese rural elders and determine if differences in the level of stress were associated with specific person-environmental characteristics. The relationship between stress and depression was also explored. A total of 201 older rural community residents participated in the study. Findings showed that rural elders experienced a number of stressors related to health and family issues. Differences in the degree of stressfulness of individuals differed by gender, educational level, living arrangement, and socioeconomic status (SES). Findings in this study also showed that there was a high association among stress level, depressive symptoms, and mood status. The findings of this study will assist community health policy-makers in determining the need for health-related services for rural elders experiencing these problems.     

护理工作应激研究进展

从护理工作应激症状、研究工具、应激源、影响因素和护理工作应激预防及应对方式方面，对国内外有关护理工作应激的研究进行综述．     

Financial Stress Predictors and the Emotional and Physical Health of Chronic Pain Patients

This study sought to examine the effects of weekly changes in financial stressors on physical and mental health of arthritis patients. Weekly telephone interviews provided data on health symptoms, financial stressors, interpersonal stress, negative affect, and average pain for arthritis patients and healthy individuals. Multilevel analyses revealed that fluctuations in financial stress were associated with greater health complaints and negative affect, but not more pain for arthritis patients. An interaction between interpersonal stress and financial stress was observed suchthat weeks of increased interpersonal stress, with increased financial stress, were associated with more health symptoms especially during weeks of increased pain. These findings suggest that financial stress contributes to both physical and mental health and appears important for arthritis patients.     

Stress,perceived support,resourcefulness and depressive symptoms in Taiwanese adolescents

Aims and objective. This study investigated (1) the prevalence of self‐reported depressive symptoms among first‐year students at an Institute of Technology in southern Taiwan; (2) whether perceived support and resourcefulness were associated with these adolescents’ depressive symptoms and (3) the moderating and mediating effects of learned resourcefulness on the relationship between stressors and the adolescents’ depressive symptoms. Background. An individual with adequate social support or resourcefulness may see stressors as less threatening or be more resilient in dealing with stressors compared with depressed individuals. The prevalence of depression in the global population increased rapidly during this past decade and consequently may have had a negative impact on population health outcomes. Among adolescents there has recently been an increased incidence of depression‐related suicide reports. Design. A cross‐sectional, correlational design. Method. Adolescents (n = 913) were recruited to complete the following: the SDI in Chinese, the Inventory of Social Supportive Behaviours Scale – Modified and the Self‐Control Schedule. Data analysis consisted of Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis. Results. The prevalence of depression among participants was 13·4%. Participants who were younger, expressed lower satisfaction with their grades, perceived their health as worse, described peer relationship problems and exhibited smoking behaviour were more likely to have depressive symptoms. We observed five partially mediating effects of resourcefulness on stressors (age, perceived health, peer relationships, grades satisfaction and smoking behaviour) and depressive symptoms and one moderating effect of resourcefulness on the relationship between peer and depressive symptoms. Conclusions. Learned resourcefulness may play a critical role in decreasing depressive symptoms. Relevance to clinical practice. These findings offer healthcare providers and educators information about the need for possible cognitive–behavioural interventions that could improve adolescents’ relationships with their peers, enhance their satisfaction of grades and moderate or prevent depressive symptoms among this population. Moreover, it might decrease the prevalence of adolescent suicide.     

Postpartum Depression: Risks,Protective Factors,and the Couple's Relationship

This study examined pregnancy risk for developing, and protective factors for preventing, Postpartum Depression (PPD). The object of this study was to (a) examine previously identified pregnancy stressors to learn which stressors put women more at risk for PPD and (b) to identify possible buffers for women who are at risk for developing PPD. A secondary data set was used for two analyses. Women were invited to participate in the study whiles still in the hospital, within 24–48 hours after delivery of a singleton, term (≥37 weeks) live-born infant. The data were collected in four large urban hospitals in Utah from 2005–2007. A total of 1,568 women participated in the study. Women who report experiencing less stress in their couple relationship are less likely to report PPD symptoms even when they have a personal history of depression and or PPD. The results of these analyses illustrate that a couple's relationship, depending on the stress level experienced in the relationship, can be both a risk and protective factor for pregnant women.     

Stress and coping responses to proficiency testing in school-age children

Nurses encounter school-age children experiencing multiple stressors and stress symptoms. Performance on proficiency tests is viewed as stressor. The purpose of this repeated measures study was to assess 53 fourth grade children's appraisal of proficiency tests, concurrent stressors, stress symptoms, and coping strategies. During October, February, March, and April, children completed a ranking of their stress associated with proficiency testing and also reported their stressors, stress symptoms, and coping strategies. Results indicated that children appraised proficiency tests as most stressful at the beginning of the school year but less stressful at the time of the test. Stressors and stress symptoms increased from baseline to 1 month before testing then declined. The number of coping strategies used by the children decreased throughout the year. Nurses can work with parents and teachers to identify children with test anxiety and target these children for interventions to improve their coping strategies.     

Longitudinal assessment of vibrations during manual and power wheelchair driving over select sidewalk surfaces

Wheelchair users rely on their wheelchairs for mobility for extended periods of time every day. According to the International Standards Organization 2631-1 standard on human vibration, individuals in a seated position when exposed to whole-body vibrations (WBV) are at risk of injury. This study evaluated vibration exposure during manual and power wheelchair driving over nine sidewalk surfaces and differences in vibration exposure over 3 years. Ten nondisabled subjects were asked to drive a manual wheelchair at 1 m/s and a power wheelchair at 1 m/s and 2 m/s over nine sidewalk surfaces while WBV were measured at the seat and footrest of the wheelchair. At 1 m/s, significant differences existed between surfaces and years at both the seat and the footrest for the manual and power wheelchair users. At 2 m/s, significant differences existed between surfaces and years at the seat and the footrest for power wheelchair users. Our results show that both manual and power wheelchair users may be at risk for secondary injuries from WBV when traveling over certain surfaces.     

The effects of vibration on hands and arms: clinical brief.

1. Prevention and early intervention are crucial for reducing unhealthy outcomes from exposures to vibration hazards. 2. Greater awareness by the worker of the interactions among stressors, heavy tools, awkward and forceful movements, cold temperatures, smoking, and other factors specific to the situation are essential. 3. Reviewing regular tool maintenance with the worker which stresses the recording of lubrication, rebalancing, calibration, and applicable support is important. 4. Health and safety committees and purchasing agents need to be supplied with vibration particulars of tools in advance of their purchase. This serves two purposes,--facilitating employee problem prevention and alerting equipment manufacturers to potential workplace exposure hazards.     

Stress,Inflammation and Preterm Birth in African American Women

In 2011, 11.7% of babies in the U.S. were born prematurely. African American women have higher rates of preterm birth compared with non-Hispanic white women. Chronic stressors experienced by African American women, such as living in disadvantaged neighborhoods and experiencing racial discrimination, have been related to higher rates of preterm birth. One potential pathway by which neighborhood disadvantage and racial discrimination can affect preterm birth is by increasing cumulative stress burden for these women. Psychological stress has been linked to preterm birth. The effects of chronic stress on preterm birth may occur through alterations of immune functions, thereby predisposing women to infection/inflammation. This review focuses on stress and inflammation as potential mechanisms for disparities in preterm birth in African American women. Prior research provides some evidence that stress-related immune interactions may contribute to preterm birth. Nurses need to be aware that African American women may experience chronic stressors in addition to the acute stress of having a premature infant.     

Pathophysiology of inflammatory,degenerative, and compressive radiculopathies

In answering the patient's question regarding how treatments are likely to "help [her] herniated disc," the mechanical and chemical components of radiculopathy should be addressed. Focal disc abnormalities often can be observed in those without pain, and symptomatic discs can become asymptomatic. Disc lesions can resolve radiologically with time, and patients' symptoms can improve before their radiographs. The literature reviewed in this article suggests that the best opportunity to offer therapies that address the chemical component of injury might be in those patients with acute disc pathology. In the case of degenerative stenosis, gradually evolving mechanical stressors may comprise the primary component of injury. In other instances, patients with radiographic evidence of neural foraminal or lumbar central stenosis may become symptomatic secondary to a superimposed mechanochemical injury. Such stressors can include a focal disc protrusion, leaking nuclear material from an annular tear, or synovial fluid from an adjacent arthrotic zygapophyseal joint. In these patients, the successful treatment of the acute injury process might allow the affected neural elements to return to their state of accommodation in an environment of gradually evolving mechanical compromise. A growing body of literature has helped clinicians to better understand the mechanisms behind radicular disorders. As spine clinicians, we should strive to educate our patients so that they may become more knowledgeable consumers of spine care. As the components of radicular pathology are elucidated further, new biochemical therapies will likely evolve. Similarly, there will probably always be a subset of patients who will require mechanical decompression, and some of these individuals should be offered such treatment without delay. There may a time in the radicular injury process at which a window of opportunity for treatment begins to close. After this point, any therapy offered will not be as likely to result in a more complete symptomatic response. Patients with chronic radicular pain may have neural structural insults and an increased sensitivity of the somatosensory system. Clinicians should strive to avoid this end stage of neural injury, which is less reversible from a chemical or mechanical standpoint and may respond only to chronic pain management modalities.     

Perceived job stress, job satisfaction, and psychological symptoms in critical care nursing

This study tested the relationships among perceived job stress, job satisfaction, and psychological symptoms of critical care nurses. A self-administered questionnaire was sent to a sample of 180 critical care nurses from eight hospitals. The results supported the hypotheses that higher levels of perceived job stress are related to lower levels of job satisfaction (r = -.24, p = .001) and to higher levels of psychological symptoms (r = .33, p = .000). These effects remained even when years of experience in nursing and shift were controlled. Item analysis, however, showed that four of the five top-ranking stressors were not related to the outcome measures. A distinction between positive and negative stressors is proposed to explain the pattern of results.     

Depression and Next-day Spillover of Negative Mood and Depressive Cognitions Following Interpersonal Stress

We hypothesized that individuals high in depression would experience a greater increase in depressive symptoms following daily interpersonal stress, as compared with their symptoms following noninterpersonal stress. Forty-six adult outpatients completed seven consecutive daily assessments of stressful events, appraisals of those events, depressive cognitions, and negative affect at the beginning of treatment. Although there were no same-day differences in reactions to interpersonal and noninterpersonal stressors, there was significant “spillover” of negative thoughts and affect following interpersonal stressors for those high in depression. In other words, for those high in depression, negative thoughts and affect increased to a greater degree on days following an interpersonal stressor, as compared to days following a noninterpersonal stressor. These findings suggest that delayed recovery from daily interpersonal stress might contribute to the maintenance of depressive symptoms.     

Low level lead exposure and oxidative stress: current opinions

Lead continues to pose a serious threat to the health of many children as well as adults. Concern about lead exposure as a significant public health problem has increased as evidence has mounted regarding adverse health effects at successively lower levels. This issue is complicated by the fact that there is no demonstrated biological function of lead in human. Lead potentially induces oxidative stress and evidence is accumulating to support the role of oxidative stress in the pathophysiology of lead toxicity. Lead is capable of inducing oxidative damage to brain, heart, kidneys, and reproductive organs. The mechanisms for lead-induced oxidative stress include the effects of lead on membranes, DNA, and antioxidant defense systems of cells. Recent epidemiological and toxicological studies have reported that lead exposure causes several diseases including hypertension, kidney disease, neurodegenerative disease and cognitive impairment. Although all these diseases include components of oxidative stress, the relevance of oxidative stress to lead-related diseases with low lead exposure has been criticized because most of the mechanistic studies have been conducted at moderate to higher dose levels. The association between low level lead exposure and oxidative stress has not been explored systematically. The present review focuses on mechanisms for lead-induced oxidative stress and relevance of oxidative stress to lead-related human disease with low lead exposure.     

Hand-arm vibration exposure influences performance of daily activities

Purpose : Although much research has been performed on the effects of vibration on nerves, muscles and vascular structures, little is known of the effects that vibration exposure to handheld tools can give on the ability to perform activities of daily living. The objective of the present study was to analyse the consequences of vibration exposure on performance of daily activities. Method : In a total group of 105 exposed male workers, a standardized self-administered ADL questionnaire, the EDAQ including 102 activity items plus 22 diagnosis-specific activity items, was filled out. Results : Forty-four workers (42%) expressed one or more difficulties in performing daily activities in the total study group. The data demonstrated that pain and reduced grip force showed a strong correlation with difficulties in performing daily activities. Conclusion : Working in a cold environment, using vibrating machines, handwriting, picking up small objects, opening lids, lifting and carrying were activities perceived as most difficult to accomplish.     

Vulnerability to Social Stress: Coping as a Mediator or Moderator of Sociotropy and Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression

Although stressful events clearly play an important role in the development of symptoms of depression and anxiety, individuals are not equally sensitive to stress. Attempts to explain differences in adjustment have focused both on the coping strategies employed in response to stress, and on personality-related vulnerabilities to specific stressors. However, little is known about the interplay between coping and personality traits such as sociotropy, which is associated with increased sensitivity to negative social events. Measures of sociotropy and symptoms of depression and anxiety were obtained in a sample of undergraduates, along with reports of coping with interpersonal stress. Regressions controlling for recent stressful events indicated that coping does not directly mediate the relationship between sociotropy and distress, but does moderate the relationship. Both primary and secondary control engagement coping buffer the link between sociotropy and anxiety/depression, whereas disengagement coping augments the relationship. Implications for social cognitive models of vulnerability to stress are highlighted.