Problem-focused coping and satisfaction with activities of daily living in individuals with muscular dystrophy and postpolio syndrome.

The problems, problem-focused coping and satisfaction with activities of daily living in a total of 119 persons with muscular weakness are described. The study encompasses three groups: 33 persons with various types of muscular dystrophy, 46 with myotonic dystrophy and 40 with symptoms relating to the post-polio syndrome. A self-report instrument for Assessment of Problem-focused Coping (APC) was used. Most of the problems reported were connected with mobility and transportation and work, but the subjects used problem-focused coping relatively infrequently and few differences were found between the different groups or between the sexes. The most widely used problem-focused coping strategy was 'Devices and tricks'. The highest degree of satisfaction was noted for personal care and the lowest for mobility and transportation. The APC provides information about patients' evaluation of everyday situations, forming a complement to functional measurements in the field of rehabilitation.