Study finds positive changes in their personal vision of patient quality of life after diagnosis of dementia -
The results of a study of patients with a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment or dementia praecox indicates that their outlook is not as bleak as expected.
a group of scientists from the University of Kentucky Sanders-Brown Center on Aging asked 48 men and women suffering from early dementia or mild cognitive impairment (MCI) a series of questions. their quality of life and personal perspectives post-diagnosis
called the Silver Lining Questionnaire (SLQ), the instrument measures the extent to which people believe that their disease has had a positive impact in areas such as : improved relationships, greater life satisfaction, positive influence on others, personal inner strength and changes in the philosophy of life. The SLQ was administered to patients previously diagnosed cancer, but has not been given to patients MCI / dementia, according to Gregory Jicha, MD, PhD, professor at the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging and lead author of the study.
"The general assumption is that this diagnosis would have a uniformly negative impact on the prospects of a patient on life, but we were surprised to find that nearly half of respondents reported positive scores "said Jicha.
positive responses were even higher on some scores, such as:
- appreciation and acceptance of life
- less concerned about the failure
- auto -Reflection, tolerance of others and the courage to face problems in life
- strengthen relationships and opportunities to meet people.
"The common stereotype for this type of diagnosis is depression, denial, and despair," said Jicha. "However, this -During small study - suggests that positive changes in attitude are as common as negative effects."
The next step, according Jicha, is to explore the variables that affect the outlook in these patients with an eye toward interventions that could help the other half find their "silver lining."
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