Trajectories of self-management and independence in youth with spina bifida: Family-related predictors of growth.
Monique M Ridosh, William Adams, Colleen F B Driscoll and 3 others
PMID 38624254WHAT IT FOUND
Higher observed family cohesion was linked to higher self-management at age 18, and more family stress events were linked to faster growth.
Other family variables were not linked at age 18.
Key findings
01At age 18, each 1-point increase in observed family cohesion was associated with about a 1-point increase in self-management total score, and no other family variable was associated.
02Growth in total, condition-related, and independent-living self-management depended on the parent-reported number of family stress events. For total self-management, families reporting 20 or more events showed the fastest growth.
03After controlling for other variables, higher numbers of stress events still predicted faster growth.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
This is an observational study of associations, so it cannot show that improving family cohesion or reducing stress events will change self-management. The final sample was 99 young adults contributing 214 in-person interviews before March 2020, and 41 enrolled participants were not included, including 29 who stopped before age 18 and 5 interviewed only online. Family stress events were measured only by parent report, not by multiple methods or objective indicators. The authors note that the stress finding is unexpected and that the temporal relationship between stress and self-management needs further study and replication. Participants were young adults with spina bifida aged 18 to 27 at the self-management interviews, so the findings may not apply to younger adolescents or other conditions.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the faster growth in families with 20 or more stressful events as evidence that stress improves self-management. The study is observational, the stress measure was parent-reported, and the authors say the temporal relationship needs further study.