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K. S. Fugl-Meyer et al.
The question was framed as follows: “What are the 3 greatest
changes in your everyday life after your partner’s stroke?” The
participants answered the questions orally and these were writ-
ten down by the research assistant.
Statistical analysis
Descriptive statistics were used to present the results; propor-
tions of satisfied within the domain “Closeness” and “Life as
a whole” based on the LiSat-11 for single stroke participants,
married stroke participants and spouses. Selected answers to
the open-ended questions are quoted to further illustrate the
results from the LiSat.
RESULTS
This study includes 72 persons (24 singles and 48 mar-
ried) who had had stroke who answered the LiSat-11 at
the 1-year and 6-year follow-ups. Moreover, 24 spouses
answered the questionnaire during the 2 follow-up oc-
casions. Data on gender, age, children at home, work
status and stroke severity in persons who had had
stroke are shown in Table I. The majority were men, the
median age at stroke onset was 65 years (range 25–86
years) and the majority were not working. According
to the BI, 88% had a mild stroke. Most spouses were
women (88%) with a mean age of 65 years (range 31–87
years). All married participants had the same spouse at
both follow-ups. The median age of all 349 participants
in the original LAS-I study group at stroke onset was
74 years (range 24–95 years), 54% were men, 61% had
a mild stroke, and 76% had a spouse.
Life satisfaction in people affected by stroke
Experiences of satisfaction with “Life as a whole” and
the “Closeness” domain are shown in Fig. 2. At the
1-year follow-up approximately 60% reported being
Table I. Sociodemographic and stroke severity data on persons
with stroke
Sex, n (%)
Women
Men
Persons with stroke
without spouse
n = 24 Persons with stroke
with spouse
n = 48
16 (67)
8 (33) 12 (25)
36 (75)
Age, median, years (range) a 66 (25–86)
Children at home, n (%) b
Yes
No
Working, n (%) b
Yes
No
Stroke severity, n (%) a
Mild
Moderate
Severe
1 (5) c
21 (95)
63 (29–85)
18 (39) c
28 (61)
3 (27)
7 (73) 20 (69)
9 (31)
21 (88)
2 (8)
1 (4) 42 (88)
3 (6)
3 (6
a
At baseline.
At 1 year for those of working age (< 65 years).
c
Missing value, n = 2.
b
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satisfied with “Life as a whole”; singles being slightly
more satisfied. At the 6-year follow-up the opposite
pattern was found, as 78% of those married expe-
rienced “Life as a whole” as satisfactory in contrast
to 58% of the single participants.
Being satisfied with “Life as a whole” was ex-
pressed: “I’ve figured it out; I ask for help if there’s
something I need. I’ve learned to ask for help more.
I accept that that’s the way it is” (6-year follow-up,
married woman). However, being unsatisfied with
“Life as a whole” was also expressed: “It’s no fun to
be alone, not fun, no one to share things with” (6-year
follow-up, single woman).
A great majority was satisfied with the domain
“Family life” at 1 year, but at the 6-year follow-up the
proportions who were satisfied were lower, both for
married and single participants (Fig. 2).
When answering the open-ended question about
changes 1 man who was satisfied referred to “Family
life”: “ Take breaks; trying to solve the problem as soon
as it arises is a given. Always think through solutions
beforehand. Requires more thought before the activity.
My wife handles activities that require standing on a
stool or a ladder.” (1-year follow-up, married man). A
married woman said the following: “I am clumsier …
can’t play piano. I try to help my girls, but I don’t play
myself” (6-year follow-up, married woman).
Satisfaction with “Partner relationship” was mar-
kedly higher for participants who had a spouse com-
pared with singles. However, among the latter, half
were satisfied, with a slight increase at 6 years (58%).
In the married group decreases were noted at 6 years.
On both follow-ups the domain “Sexual life” had
the lowest number of satisfied participants (range 32%
and 50%, see Fig. 2). However, after 6 years married
participants affected by stroke reported slightly lower,
and singles slightly higher, sexual satisfaction.
With respect to low satisfaction within “Family life”
and “Partner relationship” the participants described
their present life situation as follows: “I’m not very
active. I find it lonely at home” (6-year follow-up,
single man), and “The mental part has changed,
contact between people. A little difficult to establish
contact” (6-year follow-up, single woman), “I feel
more reserved” (6-year follow-up, married man) and
“I don´t meet with friends as often. Phone calls are
difficult” (6-year follow-up, single man). None of the
participants, spontaneously, answered the open-ended
question related to “Sexual life”.
Life satisfaction in spouses
At the 1-year follow-up 58% of the spouses expres-
sed satisfaction with “Life as a whole”. However, this
satisfaction decreased to 41% at the 6-year follow-up.