Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Feb 4;57(2):111-130.
doi: 10.1093/abm/kaac002.

Psychological Stress Management and Stress Reduction Strategies for Stroke Survivors: A Scoping Review

Madeleine Hinwood  1   2 , Marina Ilicic  2   3   4 , Prajwal Gyawali  5 , Kirsten Coupland  2   3   4 , Murielle G Kluge  3   6 , Angela Smith  7 , Sue Bowden  8 , Michael Nilsson  2   9   10 , Frederick Rohan Walker  2   3   4   6   9
Affiliations

Psychological Stress Management and Stress Reduction Strategies for Stroke Survivors: A Scoping Review

Madeleine Hinwood et al. Ann Behav Med. .

Abstract

Background: Stroke can be a life-changing event, with survivors frequently experiencing some level of disability, reduced independence, and an abrupt lifestyle change. Not surprisingly, many stroke survivors report elevated levels of stress during the recovery process, which has been associated with worse outcomes.

Purpose: Given the multiple roles of stress in the etiology of stroke recovery outcomes, we aimed to scope the existing literature on stress management interventions that have been trialed in stroke survivors.

Methods: We performed a database search for intervention studies conducted in stroke survivors which reported the effects on stress, resilience, or coping outcome. Medline (OVID), Embase (OVID), CINAHL (EBSCO), Cochrane Library, and PsycInfo (OVID) were searched from database inception until March 11, 2019, and updated on September 1, 2020.

Results: Twenty-four studies met the inclusion criteria. There was significant variation in the range of trialed interventions, as well as the outcome measures used to assess stress. Overall, just over half (13/24) of the included studies reported a benefit in terms of stress reduction. Acceptability and feasibility were considered in 71% (17/24) and costs were considered in 17% (4/24) of studies. The management of stress was rarely linked to the prevention of symptoms of stress-related disorders. The overall evidence base of included studies is weak. However, an increase in the number of studies over time suggests a growing interest in this subject.

Conclusions: Further research is required to identify optimum stress management interventions in stroke survivors, including whether the management of stress can ameliorate the negative impacts of stress on health.

Keywords: Depression; Resilience; Stress; Stress intervention; Stress management; Stroke.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Conceptual framework of stress processes after stroke, and spectrum of interventions to manage or reduce stress (adapted from Folkman and Lazarus [20]).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
PRISMA flow diagram [35].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Bhaskar S, Stanwell P, Cordato D, Attia J, Levi C. Reperfusion therapy in acute ischemic stroke: dawn of a new era? BMC Neurol. 2018;18(1):1–26. - PMC - PubMed
    1. DALYs GBD, Collaborators H. Global, regional, and national disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) for 359 diseases and injuries and healthy life expectancy (HALE) for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. Lancet. 2018;392(10159):1859–1922. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kronenberg G, Schoner J, Nolte C, Heinz A, Endres M, Gertz K. Charting the perfect storm: emerging biological interfaces between stress and stroke. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2017;267(6):487–494. - PMC - PubMed
    1. O’Donnell MJ, Chin SL, Rangarajan S, et al. . Global and regional effects of potentially modifiable risk factors associated with acute stroke in 32 countries (INTERSTROKE): a case-control study. Lancet. 2016;388(10046):761–775. - PubMed
    1. Assayag EB, Tene O, Korczyn A, et al. . High hair cortisol concentrations predict worse cognitive outcome after stroke: results from the TABASCO prospective cohort study. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2017;82:133–139. - PubMed

Publication types