Abstract
Purpose: Heart failure (HF) is associated with poor health-related quality of life (HRQoL) secondary to decrements in functional status. Patients’ adoption of coping strategies may affect their HRQoL. The review purpose was to characterize what is known about factors that impact selection of coping strategies that contribute to HRQoL among HF patients. Research Question/Hypothesis: What is known about: 1) the impact of coping strategies on HRQoL among patients with HF; and 2) factors affecting the adoption of coping strategies? Theoretical framework/rationale: This review was guided by Lazarus and Folkman’s stress and coping theory. Methods: A scoping review was conducted using the Arksey and O’Malley framework and a modified Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. Databases searched included PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, CINAHL, and PsycINFO. Keywords included: cope, coping, HF, congestive HF, HRQoL, coping strategies. Two investigators came to consensus on publications meeting eligibility criteria. Results: 674 articles were identified of which 471 articles were screened by title and abstract after duplicates were removed, with 27 meeting eligibility. 25 studies were quantitative and 2 qualitative. Six studies were randomized controlled trials, 18 were cross-sectional, and one was longitudinal. Participants’ ages ranged in age from 49-79. Most studies (n=18) reported a significant impact of coping strategies on HRQoL in HF patients, and six studies reported minimum to no impact. Factors that influenced the adoption of coping strategies were reported (n=7 studies): age, gender, religious belief, culture, depression and illness severity. Four of the seven studies reported depression as a significant factor in adopting coping strategies. Conclusion: Most studies found a significant impact on HRQoL through coping among HF patients. However, the majority of studies were cross-sectional in design, highlighting difficulties in determining causal relationships and changes over time. While only seven studies addressed factors that led to the use of coping strategies in HF, the leading contributors were sociodemographics along with depression. This review provides an overview of the state of science; lack of experimental studies suggests a gap in the literature and a need to explore this area of research.
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