Postoperative course after papilloma resection: effects of written disclosure of the experience in subjects with different alexithymia levels

The aim of the investigation was to assess the effects on postoperative course after bladder papilloma resection of a technique for the written disclosure of traumatic events in interaction with individual differences in alexithymia. Forty subjects were administered a general questionnaire and the T...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychosomatic medicine 2003-05, Vol.65 (3), p.477-484
Main Authors: Solano, Luigi, Donati, Valentina, Pecci, Francesca, Persichetti, Stefano, Colaci, Andrea
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Affective Symptoms - psychology
Cystoscopy - psychology
Expressed Emotion
Female
Hospitalization
Humans
Inpatients - psychology
Italy
Length of Stay
Male
Medical Records
Middle Aged
Papilloma - psychology
Papilloma - surgery
Postoperative Period
Severity of Illness Index
Stress, Psychological - psychology
Surveys and Questionnaires
Urinary Bladder Neoplasms - psychology
Urinary Bladder Neoplasms - surgery
Writing
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Summary:The aim of the investigation was to assess the effects on postoperative course after bladder papilloma resection of a technique for the written disclosure of traumatic events in interaction with individual differences in alexithymia. Forty subjects were administered a general questionnaire and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) the second day after admittance. Twenty subjects were asked to write for 3 days, 20 minutes a day, about their experience of being in the hospital, following instructions developed by J. W. Pennebaker and coworkers. The postoperative course was assessed objectively by the duration of stay in hospital and subjectively by subjects completing the Symptom Check List 90 (SCL-90) the day before leaving the hospital. Subjects who wrote stayed fewer days in hospital and had lower SCL-90 scores. The same effect was shown by low alexithymia levels. Study of interactions showed that the effect of writing was apparent only in subjects high in alexithymia, whereas subjects low in alexithymia showed a favorable course independent of writing. Writing about one's thoughts and feelings about being in hospital for a surgical operation has beneficial effects on postoperative course. This holds particularly true for high alexithymic subjects, who obtain through writing the same outcome as low alexithymic subjects.
ISSN:0033-3174
1534-7796
DOI:10.1097/01.PSY.0000035781.74170.F1