Psychosocial health status of persons seeking treatment for exposure to libby amphibole asbestos

Our plain-English summary of Psychosocial health status of persons seeking treatment for exposure to libby amphibole asbestos, by C. Weinert, W.G. Hill, C.A. Winters, et al (ISRN Nursing, 2011).

The study

• Authors: C. Weinert, W.G. Hill, C.A. Winters, S.W. Kuntz, K. Rowse, T. Hernandez, B. Black, S. Cudney
• Journal: ISRN Nursing
• Published: 2011;2011:735936
• Cited by: 8 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

A cross-sectional exploratory study was conducted to describe the psychosocial health status of persons seeking health care for exposure to Libby amphibole asbestos (LAA). Health indicators including depression, stress, acceptance of illness, and satisfaction with access and financial aspects of care were obtained via electronic and paper-pencil survey. The exposure pathway and demographic data were gleaned from the health record. Of the 386 participants, more than one-third (34.5%) demonstrated significant levels of psychological distress. The oldest group of women had the lowest levels of depression and stress and the highest acceptance of illness. Gender, age, and satisfaction with financial resources were significantly related to depression, stress, and acceptance of illness. Satisfaction with access to care was significant only for stress. No differences in depression, stress, and acceptance of illness were found based on residence, exposure pathway, or insurance status.

In plain English

This was a cross-sectional survey of 386 patients of a specialty asbestos clinic in Libby, Montana, all with a history of environmental or occupational exposure to Libby amphibole asbestos. Participants completed standard questionnaires on depression, stress, acceptance of illness and satisfaction with health care. Average scores were 13.5 for depression, 21.0 for stress and 47.5 for acceptance of illness. More than one-third (34.5%) scored 16 or above on the depression scale. That level suggests clinically significant psychological distress but not necessarily clinical depression. Women aged 65 and over differed significantly from every other age-and-sex group on depression and stress. The authors described older women as much less depressed than older men. Women scored higher than men on acceptance of illness at every age. People more satisfied with access to care were less depressed, and those more satisfied with the financial side of care accepted their illness more. Scores did not differ by exposure pathway (worker, family or household contact, other) or by residence. The authors concluded that stress and acceptance were moderate but distress was common. They noted that participants came from a single clinic and were mostly local.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Descriptive (exploratory) cross-sectional questionnaire study
• Who was studied: 386 patients of a specialty asbestos clinic in Libby, Montana, living in the Libby area, elsewhere in Montana and across the USA, with a history of environmental or occupational amphibole asbestos exposure
• Exposure: Exposure to Libby amphibole asbestos. Exposure pathway was taken from health records and grouped in the analysis as vermiculite worker, family/household contact, or other.
• Main results:
  • Whole group (N = 386) mean scores: depression 13.5 (SD 10.7), stress 21.0 (SD 9.0), acceptance of illness 47.5 (SD 7.5)
  • 34.5% of participants scored 16 or above on the depression scale (CES-D)
  • On the CES-D, a score of 16 or more suggests clinically significant psychological distress, but not necessarily clinical depression
  • Depression: participants with higher satisfaction with health care access were less depressed. There was an age-by-gender interaction, with older women much less depressed than older men.
  • Women aged 65+ differed significantly from all other groups of women and men on depression
  • Depression appeared to differ by primary insurance at first, but post hoc tests showed no significant differences among the three insurance groups
  • Stress: on both satisfaction with financial resources and satisfaction with health care access, participants in the lowest quartile differed significantly from those in the 3rd and 4th quartiles
  • Women aged 65+ differed from all other men and women on stress
  • Acceptance of illness differed by satisfaction with financial resources, F(3, 361) = 7.93, and by gender, F(1, 361) = 4.20, both P < .05
  • Women had higher acceptance of illness scores than men at every age level
  • Participants with higher satisfaction with financial resources for health care had higher acceptance of their illness
  • No differences in mean depression, stress or acceptance of illness by residence, exposure pathway or insurance
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that participants showed moderate levels of stress and acceptance of illness. More than one-third (34.5%) had depression scores indicating clinically significant psychological distress.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Participants were recruited from a single specialty clinic, not from the Libby community at large
  • Most participants were local (Lincoln County and Montana), which may limit generalizing the findings to other exposed groups

Mines named here

Asbestos mines this study is about. Each mine's page says who ran it, when it worked, and what it produced.

• Libby vermiculite mine, Montana

All asbestos mines

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Libby amphiboles.

Related studies

• Descriptive analysis of the respiratory health status of persons exposed to Libby amphibole asbestos — C.A. Winters, W.G. Hill, et al. (2012)
• Determining satisfaction with access and financial aspects of care for persons exposed to Libby amphibole asbestos: rural and national environmental policy implications — C.A. Winters, W. Hill, et al. (2011)
• Childhood exposure to Libby amphibole asbestos and respiratory health in young adults — P.H. Ryan, C.H. Rice, et al. (2017)
• Rural public health policy models to address an evolving environmental asbestos disaster — S.W. Kuntz, C.A. Winters, et al. (2009)
• A review of scientific literature examining the mining history, geology, mineralogy, and amphibole asbestos health effects of the Rainy Creek igneous complex, Libby, Montana, USA — B.R. Bandli, M.E. Gunter (2006)
• Exposure to airborne amphibole structures and health risks: Libby, Montana — B. Price (2008)

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