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Psychological well-being and associated factors among elderly Hansen’s Disease patients in leprosaria

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Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine Aims and scope

Abstract

Objectives

We investigated psychological well-being and associated factors among elderly Hansen’s Disease (HD) patients in three national leprosaria in Japan.

Methods

Three questionnaires on physical and social factors, and psychological well-being based on the 12-item of General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) were used to survey all HD patients admitted to three leprosaria in Japan. The number of respondents over 65 years old who completed all 12 items of GHQ-12 was 754 (459 men and 295 women) with a response rate of 80.9%. Data were analyzed by t-test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) to determine factors associated with psychological well-being.

Results

The impairment in 8 physical functions, walking, eating, and toileting for both men and women, bathing for men, and vision, dressing and grooming for women, were significantly related to high GHQ-12 scores by t-test and ANCOVA. Having no close friends, less frequent contact with neighbors, and no or less frequent participation in group activities in men, and inactive daily life style in male and female HD patients, were related to high GHQ-12 scores by both analyses.

Conclusion

The present results showed that physical factors and inactive daily life style were related to psychological well-being for both men and women. Social factors were related to psychological well-being among elderly male HD patients in Japan. Further follow-up study is necessary to examine the causal relationships among psychological well-being and associated factors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Kochi University, Kohasu, Okoho-cho, Nankoku-shi, 783-8505, Kochi, Japan

    Mari Kataoka & Hiroyuki Nakamura

Authors
  1. Mari Kataoka
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  2. Hiroyuki Nakamura
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Correspondence to Hiroyuki Nakamura.

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Kataoka, M., Nakamura, H. Psychological well-being and associated factors among elderly Hansen’s Disease patients in leprosaria. Environ Health Prev Med 10, 201–207 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02897711

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02897711

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