Bradley McDaniels1, Beatrice Lee2, Stuart Rumrill3, Kirsteen Edereka-Great4, Indu Subramanian5,6. 1. Department of Rehabilitation and Health Services, University of North Texas, 1155 Union Circle #311456, Denton, TX, 76203-5017, USA. Bradley.mcdaniels@unt.edu. 2. Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special Education, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA. 3. Department of Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education, University of WI-Madison, Madison, WI, USA. 4. Department of Rehabilitation and Health Services, University of North Texas, 1155 Union Circle #311456, Denton, TX, 76203-5017, USA. 5. Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA. 6. PADRECC, West Los Angeles, Veterans Administration, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Apathy remains a common and problematic neuropsychiatric feature associated with Parkinson's disease resulting in reductions in health-related quality of life, and effective treatments remain elusive. Meaning in life (MIL) has been implicated in a variety of positive health outcomes, and this study assesses the relationship between apathy and MIL while hoping to identify a potential new interventional target. METHODS: A cross-sectional sample of 237 PwPD completed surveys to evaluate MIL and a variety of non-motor symptoms (NMS), and a hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to evaluate relationships of interest. RESULTS: Correlational analysis indicated the presence of meaning in life was statistically negatively and moderately to strongly correlated with apathy (r = - 0.60, p < .001). Hierarchical regression analysis results showed that presence of meaning in life explained a total of 48% of variance in apathy. More specifically, the presence of meaning in life (β = - 0.43, p < .001) was associated with apathy after controlling for sociodemographic and other potentially confounding variables. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the significant negative relationship between MIL and apathy. Considering the lack of effective treatments for apathy, which is one of the most disabling symptoms affecting PwPD, identifying a potential target for intervention is exciting. MIL has the potential to offer clinicians a novel intervention to provide a much-needed treatment option to improve both apathy and HRQoL.
BACKGROUND: Apathy remains a common and problematic neuropsychiatric feature associated with Parkinson's disease resulting in reductions in health-related quality of life, and effective treatments remain elusive. Meaning in life (MIL) has been implicated in a variety of positive health outcomes, and this study assesses the relationship between apathy and MIL while hoping to identify a potential new interventional target. METHODS: A cross-sectional sample of 237 PwPD completed surveys to evaluate MIL and a variety of non-motor symptoms (NMS), and a hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to evaluate relationships of interest. RESULTS: Correlational analysis indicated the presence of meaning in life was statistically negatively and moderately to strongly correlated with apathy (r = - 0.60, p < .001). Hierarchical regression analysis results showed that presence of meaning in life explained a total of 48% of variance in apathy. More specifically, the presence of meaning in life (β = - 0.43, p < .001) was associated with apathy after controlling for sociodemographic and other potentially confounding variables. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the significant negative relationship between MIL and apathy. Considering the lack of effective treatments for apathy, which is one of the most disabling symptoms affecting PwPD, identifying a potential target for intervention is exciting. MIL has the potential to offer clinicians a novel intervention to provide a much-needed treatment option to improve both apathy and HRQoL.
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