Daily hassles and stress vulnerability in patients with a whiplash-associated disorder

Abstract

Daily hassles and stress vulnerability in patients with a whiplash-associated disorderBlokhorst, M.G.B.G.; Lousberg, R.; Vingerhoets, Ad; Winter, F.A.M.; Zilvold, G. General rightsCopyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights.-Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research -You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain -You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright, please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. The objectives of this study were to examine the self-reported, daily problems of patients with a whiplash-associated disorder (WAD) and a healthy control group, with the hypothesis that WAD patients would report more persondependent hassles and perceive them as more serious than the healthy control group, due to the prior experience of a whiplash injury. In addition, it was expected that the person-independent seriousness rating would be elevated, reflecting the increased vulnerability of WAD patients to common stressors. Finally, a strong relationship was expected between frequency or seriousness of daily problems on the one hand and level of distress on the other. Forty-seven WAD patients seeking treatment and 47 matched healthy control participants completed the everyday problem checklist (EPCL). The level of distress was measured by the symptom checklist (SCL-90). As expected, most EPCL-scores in the WAD group were higher than the scores of the healthy participants. Regression analysis further revealed that 61% of the variance in general distress in the WAD group could be explained by EPCL scores and educational background. Chronic WAD patients report a high stress load, which is related specifically to personal functioning after the whiplash injury. In addition, WAD patients (especially those with a low educational level) appear to be more vulnerable and react with more distress than healthy people to all kinds of stressors. Stress responses probably play an important role in the maintenance or deterioration of whiplash-associated complaints.

The impact of non–injury-related factors on disability secondary to whiplash associated disorder type II: a retrospective file review

“…Although it is reasonable that physical trauma has a role in the expression of disability secondary to WADs, 11 it is also becoming increasingly clear that psychosocial factors, as well as compensation systems and medicolegal factors, may also contribute in many cases. [7][8][9][10][11][12][13]24 Our analysis of WAD type II patients in receipt of compensation and undergoing similar treatment from the same chiropractor found that higher self-reported disability on initial assessment was associated with female sex and in particular by retaining a lawyer. Large prospective studies are needed to establish the validity of these findings.…”

Whiplash injuries in Finland--the possibility of some sociodemographic and psychosocial factors to predict the outcome after one year

“…25 Furthermore it has been concluded that coping and psychological stress responses play an important role in the maintenance or worsening of whiplash-associated complaints. 26 On the other hand there are studies which show that measures of pre-accident psychological status do not predict the physical outcome of whiplash injury. 5,27 In our study we estimated the role of possible depression by using BDI and the role of possible psychic distress by using GHQ, both generally used and accepted validated questionnaires.…”

The use of psychosocial stress scales in preterm birth research

“…Validity- EPCL scores correlate positively with distress, and EPCL scores directly influence subjective health complaints, immune activity and cardiovascular function 41,42 …”