UF researchers to study psychological care program for patients with heart devices

A University of Florida research team will evaluate the effectiveness of a stress management program in helping patients who recently received an implantable heart device adapt to health issues raised by the life-saving technology.

The research will be led by Samuel Sears, Ph.D., an associate professor of clinical and health psychology at UF’s College of Public Health and Health Professions. Supported by a two-year, $120,000 grant from the American Heart Association, researchers will study the effectiveness of a group stress management program for patients who have received implantable cardioverter defibrillators.

Previous research has shown that the implantable cardioverter defibrillator, or ICD, is the treatment of choice for patients with potentially life-threatening irregular heartbeats. A battery-operated device placed in the chest of patients, the ICD delivers a high energy shock to restore normal rhythm if it senses a dangerous rapid rhythm developing. An estimated 50,000 Americans receive ICDs each year.

The overall benefit of the ICD, however, may be diminished by the significant psychological distress of receiving a shock, Sears said. Research done in his lab has shown that between 24 percent and 38 percent of patients with an ICD experience significant distress and may benefit from psychosocial interventions.

“Biomedical technologies, like the ICD, can save lives via a shock to the heart,” Sears said. “But their purpose is also to help save patients’ quality of life, and psychological interventions can help them adjust to the ICD successfully.”

Participants in the study will be randomly assigned to participate in a six-week group-based program or a four-hour workshop. They will receive relaxation training, stress management skills, tips on planning positive experiences and actions, and help in maintaining a positive outlook on their health situation.

“This kind of program has been done on an individual basis with patients, and we’ve found that it has worked very well,” said Adrienne Kovacs, Ph.D., a study investigator. “Now we’ll be able to study the program systematically and see if it works in a group situation.”

To evaluate the effectiveness of the program, researchers will collect information on the patients’ psychosocial status, history of ICD shocks and levels of the stress hormone cortisol before the program, immediately following the group treatment and four months after the program.

“If this program is found to be as valuable as we expect, many institutions will want to adopt this model as a standard of care for patients with an ICD,” Sears said.

The study’s multidisciplinary research team also includes UF College of Medicine researchers Jamie Conti, M.D., Eileen Handberg, Ph.D., A.R.N.P., and Anne Curtis, M.D., and College of Dentistry researcher Joseph Riley, Ph.D.

To be eligible, you must have received at least one ICD shock within the past six months or have ever had an ICD storm (3 or more shocks within 24 hours). Interested participants can contact Eva R. Serber, M.A., at 352-273-6051 or cardiac@hp.ufl.edu.