Citation

Pederson CL, Gorman-Ezell K, Brookings JB. Fatigue 2020; 8(2): 108-118.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/21641846.2020.1783065

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a chronic illness that disrupts the autonomic nervous system and decreases quality of life. The Fennell Phase Inventory is a developmental instrument that divides the experience of chronic illness into four phases: Crisis, Stabilization, Resolution, and Integration. This study applied the Fennell Phase Inventory to POTS patients.

METHODS: 360 women with a primary diagnosis of POTS completed the World Health Organization Quality of Life BREF scale, Fennell Phase Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory-II, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire-15, Ten Item Personality Inventory, and the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised.

RESULTS: Among these POTS patients, 35.8% were in the Fennell Crisis phase, 14.7% Stabilization, 46.7% Resolution, and 2.8% were in the Integration phase. One-way analyses of variance showed significant differences between the four Fennell groups on Overall Quality of Life, Physical Health, Psychological Health, Social Health, Depression, Hopelessness, Thwarted Belongingness, and Perceived Burdensomeness. Post hoc tests revealed that the Crisis group was more distressed than the other three groups on nearly every symptom scale (p <.05), but that the Stabilization, Resolution, and Integration groups were statistically similar to each other.

CONCLUSIONS: Nearly one-third of participants were in Crisis, a phase characterized by lower quality of life and significant psychological distress. Recognizing and addressing the concerns of POTS patients according to their current chronic illness phase may help decrease the overall trauma experienced by the patient and improve compliance to proposed treatment regimens. © 2020 IACFS/ME.

Language: en

Keywords

adult; human; mental health; female; quality of life; suicidal ideation; depression; health; scoring system; personality; perceived burdensomeness; hopelessness; major clinical study; questionnaire; distress syndrome; psychologic assessment; self report; priority journal; emotion; emotional stability; Beck Depression Inventory; disease duration; Article; Beck Hopelessness Scale; disease burden; Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire 15; Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire; Fennell Phase Inventory; postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome; Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS); Ten Item Personality Inventory