Is Coping Style Linked to Emotional States in Heart Failure Patients

Background: Negative emotional states such as anxiety and depression are associated with increased mortality and morbidity in cardiac patients. Clinicians who counsel patients with heart disease often focus on enhancing coping skills to reduce negative emotions. Methods: To identify the relationship between 3 coping styles (active behavioral, active cognitive, and avoidance) and emotional states, we studied 84 advanced heart failure patients and used the Dealing with Illness-R Checklist to measure coping and the Profile of Mood States to measure emotional distress. Results: Patients who reported greater use of active behavioral coping demonstrated less fatigue and more vigor than patients who reported lower use of that coping style. When demographic and clinical variables were taken into account, the avoidance coping style was associated with significantly higher anxiety, anger, depression, confusion, and fatigue in patients with advanced heart failure. Conclusions: Incorporating interventions that support active behavioral coping in lieu of avoidance coping may improve the emotional well-being of patients with heart failure.