Introduction: Cardiovascular diseases represent a complex challenge both for patients and their partners, forcing them to reconsider and reorganize their relationship in the light of an unexpected, potentially traumatic event.
Aim: This study explores the psychological and relational impact of heart disease within the couple, with particular attention to how stress communication and different dyadic coping styles (positive, negative, common), used during the rehabilitation process and in the post-discharge period, correlate with the symptoms of PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) in both members of the dyad.
Method: A longitudinal dyadic design was adopted. A total of 120 couples participated at admission to rehabilitation, and of these, 40 patients and 36 partner were reassessed six months after discharge using a multidimensional questionnaire.
Results: Results showed a higher incidence of PTSD among partners compared to patients, at both assessment points. Also, the results indicate a significant negative correlation between common dyadic coping and post-traumatic symptomatology (in terms of the amount of patients' symptoms at T0), but not at the end of rehabilitation. The results didn't reveal any significant correlations between positive dyadic coping and PTSD across the different measurements, either in patients or in partners.
Conclusions: Overall, the present results suggest that couple dynamics change over the course of rehabilitation , contributing in different ways to the onset of PTSD symptoms in both patients and partners. The findings highlight that, also for partners, the cardiac event represents a stressful experience, underscoring the importance of effective communication, which can improve both the relationship and post-traumatic symptomatology.