Research Paper: The Role of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Self-Efficacy Beliefs on the Quality of Life ofPatients With Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury

Background: Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) and its post-traumatic stress remarkably influence thepatients’ Quality of Life (QOL). Besides, some health determinants such as self-efficacy beliefs canchange QOL of patients, too.Objectives: To determine the role of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and self-efficacybeliefs on the QOL after traumatic SCI.Materials & Methods: Out of 133 SCI patients studied from Spinal Cord Injury Center of RashtCity (North of Iran), 90 qualified for this cross-sectional study. A senior psychologist conductedstructured interviews for 70 people at the center and another 20 patients at their homes, because oftheir inability to come to the center. Data collection instruments were researcher-made questionnairecontaining both individual-social and lesion-related variables, post-traumatic stress scale for DSM-5, Sherer general self-efficacy questionnaire and the SCIQL-23 (Spinal Cord Injury Quality-of-Life-23) questionnaire (to assess the QOL in patients with SCI). The obtained data were analyzedby SPSS through the Pearson correlation coefficient, Independent student t test and hierarchicalregression analysis (after adjusting confounding demographic factors).Results: Correlation coefficients showed that the QOL of SCI patients decreases (P<0.0001) withan increase in symptoms of PTSD and improves (P<0.0001) with increasing self-efficacy beliefs.Hierarchical regression analysis also revealed that after removing the effect of the confoundingvariables (duration of lesion, gender, type of lesion, having a bedsore, catheter, nurse, diaper,wheelchair), signs of PTSD (F=7.38, P<0.0001) and self-efficacy beliefs (F=18.35, P<0.0001)significantly explained 66% of the total variance of SCIQL-23 scores.Conclusion: The results of this research stresses on the prevention and treatment of PTSD andpromoting self-efficacy beliefs in SCI patients in order to improve their QOL.

Keywords:

Quality of Life , Spinal cord injuries , Self-efficacy , Stress disorders , Post-traumatic