Women recovering from acute myocardial infarction: Psychosocial and physical functioning outcomes for 12 months after acute myocardial infarction

Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe the recovery trajectories for women after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Design: The study was designed as a prospective, comparative, longitudinal, convenience sample. Setting: The study was set in 5 West Coast major medical centers and 1 northeastern major medical center. Patients: The subjects were 76 women (81% white, 19% African American; mean age, 67.8 years) with AMI. Outcome Measures: Outcome measures were the Duke Activity Status Index (DASI), a measure of cardiac and physical functional capacity; the Profile of Mood States (POMS), a measure of mood disturbance; the Mastery instrument, a sense of mastery in oneʹs life; and the Support Requirements Interview, a measurement of needs for social support and assistance during recovery. Results: Repeated measures analysis of variance results revealed that white women recovered more quickly than did African American women, with DASI scores approximately 50% better. POMS and Mastery results improved over time for both groups, with limited differences between African American and white women. At 6 weeks after AMI, age, social support, and mastery contributed significantly and predicted 42% of the variance in functional status (DASI) and 44% of the variance in mood disturbance as measured with the POMS. Conclusion: African American women and white women have similar recovery trajectories in terms of psychosocial recovery from AMI but different physical recovery trajectories. (Heart Lung® 2002;31:399-410.)