Psychosomatic symptoms in parents 2 years after the death of a child with cancer

Ida Marie Moore, Catherine L. Gilliss, Ida Martinson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

31 Scopus citations

Abstract

Forty-five mothers and 30 fathers, representing 58 families, completed the Symptom Checklist 90-Re-vised, a measure of current psychological and somatic symptoms, 24 months after the death of a child with cancer. The mean scores from six symptom dimensions (somatization, obsessive-compulsive, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, anxiety, and hostility) and a global measure of the depth of symptomatology, the Global Severity Index, were contrasted with those of the nonpatient and psychiatric outpatient norms reported by Derogatis (1983). Two years after the child’s death parents showed a symptom profile reflecting significantly greater distress than that reported by nonbereaved, nonpatient adults. The results highlight important distinctions between bereaved parents and psychiatric outpatients.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)104-107
Number of pages4
JournalNursing research
Volume37
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 1988
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Nursing

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