Ambulophobia as a Specific Phobia—Defining the Problem Among Patients of Long-Term Care Facilities in Poland

Abstract

BackgroundAmbulophobia is a type of specific phobia that involves a fear of walking. This phobia mainly affects older people, who prefer not to leave their bed or home to avoid walking on uneven surfaces and reduce the risk of falling. The problem seems to be very important in terms of public health and the organization of long-term care, as Poland has one of the highest rates of elderly population growth.ObjectivesThe aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of ambulophobia among patients of long-term care facilities in Poland and to identify factors increasing the risk of this specific phobia in the study group.Material and MethodsThe study was conducted between January and July 2021. Data collected from 379 patients of 16 long-term care facilities located in Poland were analyzed. The study used the diagnostic criteria for specific phobias according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition, and standardized questionnaires such as MMSE, GDS-16, DOS and ADL. The χ2 test was used to test the significance of differences (p = 0.05).ResultsThe prevalence of ambulophobia in the study group was 30.1%. Ambulophobia significantly more often concerned the female sex (37.7%) and people over 70 years of age (42,1%). Factors such as depression, Parkinson's disease, orthostatic hypotonia, a history of falling or being a witness to another person falling, and disability of at least a moderate degree increased the likelihood of ambulophobia.ConclusionsBased on the obtained results, it was found that the protective factors in the development of ambulophobia are male sex, younger age, high independence, fewer drugs used per day and no previous falls or seeing another person fall.

Polish Adaptation of the Modified Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia for Fatigue (TSK-F) and the Revision of the Tampa Scale in Terms of Pain for Cancer Patients

“…These issues, in terms of neck and back pain, were raised by researchers including Asiri et al [42]. This aspect additionally relates to fear of falling [1] and cancer stage [43,44]. Caraceni and Shkodra [43] indicated that at least half of PLWC experience pain of hard-to-define but severe intensity in various locations of the body, and that its nature excluded them from daily functioning.…”

“…Fear of movement, as contrasted with ambulophobia [1], is known in the scientific literature under the term kinesiophobia and refers to an excessive, irrational and debilitating fear of performing physical movement, resulting from a sense of vulnerability to painful injury or re-injury [2]. Kinesiophobia alters the way people move and causes an adaptation of motor behavior to avoid or control pain, providing a substrate for motor passivity [3].…”