Annotated Bibliography Example on Marital Stress Worsens Prognosis in Women with CHD

Orth-Gomer, K., Wamala, S. P., Horsten, M., Schenck-Gustafsson, K., Schneiderman, N., & Mittleman, M. A. (2000). Marital stress worsens prognosis in women with coronary heart disease: The Stockholm Female Coronary Risk Study. Jama, 284(23), 3008-3014. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/193378

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The study investigated the prognostic effect of marital stress in women with coronary heart disease. Researchers followed up 292 female patients with coronary heart disease and aged between 30 to 65 years for an average period of 5 years. Women who are married or cohabiting with male partners and experiencing marital stress were most likely to develop coronary heart disease. Marital stress was determined to be the baseline for the worse prognosis of coronary heart disease in women. Researchers conducted an in-depth analysis of stressful factors of marital stress. They determined that women in marriage or cohabiting in male partners seek emotional support from their confidants. About 75 percent of women diagnosed with coronary heart disease in Stockholm reported that their partners were the primary providers of emotional support. Others said that they obtained emotional support from female relatives. Emotional support is essential to living a healthy life. Women whose partners do not provide the needed emotional support experience stress in relationships and a three-fold increased chance of contracting coronary heart disease as compared to single women.

Researchers established that most women perceive that relationships with male partners are less supportive. Women reported that they give more emotional support to their male spouses than they get back. In a population-based study, researchers determined that men were most likely to name their female spouses as their primary social support provider. Marriage or cohabiting with a problematic spouse was found to be the chief reason for worsening prognosis among women with coronary heart disease. Despite other kinds of stress to which may be subject, women were found to be more vulnerable to marital stress. As a result, stressful experiences with problematic spouses contributed to most cases of coronary heart disease among women. Therefore, marital stress worsens the prognosis of coronary heart disease. However, more research is needed to establish the pathogenic reasons for these novel findings.

Orth-Gomer, K. (2002). Marital Stress and Coronary Disease in Women. https://www.reliasmedia.com/articles/75407-marital-stress-and-coronary-disease-in-women

The study explored how marital stress affects persons with coronary heart disease. Researchers determined that people in marriage, especially in stressful marriages, are more prone to developing coronary heart disease as compared to single persons. Married women or those cohabiting with male partners are at the brink of marital stress, especially if they are in abusive relationships. In abusive romantic relationships, women are the most vulnerable to abuse than men. Therefore, conflicts occurring in relationships affect women in a greater extent than men. The study considered women who have been diagnosed with coronary heart disease. The patients were followed up to determine relapses and contributing factors.

Most women who reported to be experiencing consistent marital conflicts with their spouses also showed frequent relapses to coronary heart disease. Relationships play a significant role in the emotional and psychological health of women. Therefore, if they find problematic spouses, they would be highly affected. Marital stress contributes to poor styles of living among women making them develop heart complications. The study concurred with findings of Orth Gomer et al. (2000) that the poor living styles of women in abusive relationships lead to the development of coronary heart disease. Women in abusive relationships have challenges such as lack of concentration at work, poor eating habits, sleeplessness, and sometimes lack of desire to work. Marital stress hinders women from engaging in exercises that might be beneficial to their health. When these factors continue, they might end up developing heart complications such as coronary heart disease. Therefore, women in abusive relationships need support and encouragement to engage in relevant activities and take appropriate measures that lessen their vulnerability to marital stress. They should engage in activities that reduce stress and strengthen their coping ability.

Blom, M., Janszky, I., Balog, P., Orth-Gomér, K., & Wamala, S. P. (2003). Social relations in women with coronary heart disease: the effects of work and marital stress. Journal of Cardiovascular Risk, 10(3), 201-206. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1097/01.hjr.0000065926.57001.e0

This study explored the effects of marital stress on morbidity and mortality of coronary heart disease. The study involved 292 women aged 65 years and below who have been admitted with acute events of coronary heart disease in Stockholm, Sweden. The patients were observed for up to six months after hospitalization to determine changes in relation to marital stress as the key factor. The study involved interviews to gain direct opinions and responses from patients who are affected by marital stress.

According to this research, women in marriage or cohabiting with problematic male partners were more likely to develop coronary heart disease as compared to single ones or those in peaceful relationships. The study is in agreement with the findings by Orth-Gomer (2002) that attributed the development of coronary heart disease to less tangible support from spouses in abusive relationships. Problematic spouses have no time to listen to their wives and establish what problems they might have. Therefore, women find it difficult to control or overcome the marital stress they experience. Insensitivity of male partners to their wives leads to less social integration that makes women vulnerable to stress and dissatisfaction. Since their male spouses are neither understanding nor willing to understand them, these women are pushed to the brink of stress and poor living styles that makes them vulnerable to developing coronary heart disease. Some women were also found to have no sense of belonging and acceptance in their relationships with the abusive partner. The loss of sense of belonging leaves a great emotional rift in them, making them develop stress and emotional breakdown. As a result, they become vulnerable to develop coronary heart disease. Therefore, married women or those cohabiting need to be sensitized on the need to practice healthy activities that can reduce stress and cushion them from developing coronary heart disease.

Balog, P., Janszky, I., Leineweber, C., Blom, M., Wamala, S. P., & Orth-Gomé, K. (2003). Depressive symptoms in relation to marital and work stress in women with and without coronary heart disease. The Stockholm Female Coronary Risk Study. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 54(2), 113-119. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022399902004853

The study aimed at examining the effects of marital stress on depressive symptoms in middle-aged women suffering from coronary heart disease. The study incorporated married women or those cohabiting who suffer from coronary heart disease. The study was population-based to give a wide range of views and opinions concerning the subject topic. The participants were women picked between ages 30 and 65. The study involved married women who are currently admitted and diagnosed with coronary heart disease and those who are not married or in peaceful relationships. The researchers wanted to determine how marital stress contributed to coronary heart disease prevalence and causative factors. Single women were used as the control experiment to determine how marital stress contributes to coronary heart disease infection.

The study found out that women in marriage or cohabiting with quarrelsome partners were most likely to develop coronary heart disease as compared with those in peaceful relationships. Heart diseases, such as coronary heart disease, are developed when one undergoes unfavorable stress for a long time. Stress can be draining and heart-breaking, especially when it comes from the most trusted or loved individual like the spouse. Spouses need to strike an excellent balance to deal with their cares together, such as disagreements that might occur between them. Attentiveness to each other’s problems would be the most important factor in eliminating the risk of developing marital stress and consequently contracting coronary heart disease. In a structured interview with the patients in abusive relationships, it was determined that conflicts inflict fears and uncertainties on women, making them opt for undesirable lifestyles to help them cope with distress. As observed by Balog et al. (2003), women in stressful relationships tend to develop poor eating habits and do not engage in bodily exercises. As a result, they remain susceptible to stress and eventually develop coronary heart disease and other related complications. Determining stressful factors in relationships is a great way to avoid marital stress because spouses would settle conflicts before they develop into irresolvable problems with the capacity to cause hardcore marital stress.

Eaker, E. D., Sullivan, L. M., Kelly-Hayes, M., D’Agostino Sr, R. B., & Benjamin, E. J. (2007). Marital status, marital strain, and risk of coronary heart disease or total mortality: the Framingham Offspring Study. Psychosomatic medicine, 69(6), 509-513. https://journals.lww.com/psychosomaticmedicine/Abstract/2007/07000/Marital_Status,_Marital_Strain,_and_Risk_of.5.aspx

The aim of the study was to investigate if marriage and marital stress contribute to the incidence and mortality of coronary heart disease. The research examined 3,682 participants of the Framingham Offspring Study between the years 1984 and 1987. The study considered marital status, marital stress, and factors that make people vulnerable to developing coronary heart disease. Therefore, the study was a ten-year follow-up of the incident and mortality of coronary heart disease.

According to this research, married men were half like to die of coronary heart disease as compared to single men. Women who avoided conflicts with their spouses by self-silence had a four times risk of dying with coronary heart disease as compared with those who did not. Therefore, men in peaceful relationships had a much lower risk of contracting coronary heart disease as compared with those in abusive relationships as well as the unmarried. Likewise, women who harbored stress due to self-silencing during disagreements with spouses tend to be at more risk of contracting coronary heart disease as compared with those who spoke out their anger and forgot about the disagreements. The authors of this article agreed with findings by Blom et al. (2003) that determined that speaking openly and making agreements in marriage could be good for solving problems that may lead to marital stress. If left unattended, marital stress may spring up and cause irreversible damage to the health of spouses.