Effects of group positive psychotherapy combined with cognitive intervention on depression, psychological elasticity and cognitive function in patients with chronic heart failure

Objective To explore the effect of group positive psychotherapy combined with cognitive intervention on depression, resilience and cognitive function in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) . Methods A total of 86 patients with CHF who were undertaking treatment in the Wuxi NO.2 People's Hospital from August 2016 to August 2017 were selected by convenience sampling method, and divided into control group and intervention group by random number table method, with 43 cases in each group. The patients in the control group were given routine treatment and nursing, while the patients in the intervention group received 6 weeks of group positive psychotherapy combined with cognitive intervention. Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) , Psychological Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) , Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MoCA) and Self-Care Ability Implementing Scale (ESCA) were used to investigate the patients before intervention, 3 weeks after intervention, 6 months after intervention and 12 months after intervention to assess patients' depression, resilience, cognitive level and self-management ability. The number of heart failure episodes before and after intervention was recorded and compared between the two groups. Results The average scores of HAMD and CD-RISC in intervention group were (16.32±1.404) and (63.91±2.644) respectively after 3 weeks of intervention. The improvement of depression was better than that of control group (P<0.05) . The scores of MoCA in intervention group at 6 and 12 months after intervention were (26.65±1.850) and (26.19±1.906) respectively. The decrease level was lower than that in control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05) . The self-management ability of the intervention group was better than that of the control group, and the times of heart failure was less than that of the control group, with statistical significance (P<0.05) . Conclusions Group positive psychotherapy combined with cognitive intervention can effectively improve the depressive mood of CHF patients, enhance the level of psychological resilience and cognitive function, improve the ability of self-health care and management, reduce the number of heart failure attacks, and has a certain long-term effect. Key words: Depression; Resilience, psychological; Chronic heart failure; Group positive psychological intervention; Cognitive function