Disease acceptance and socio-familial support in late adolescents and young adults with cardiomyopathy: a pilot study

Background: Cardiovascular disease acceptance has been little studied in late adolescents and young adults with cardiomyopathy and mostly regarded as integration into personal rather than social identity. Integration in social relationships is also relevant, given the role of social support in facilitating adaptation and acceptance of chronic illness. Therefore, this study explored whether perceived support from family, friends, and romantic partners was associated with disease acceptance, controlling for disease-related factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study involved 68 individuals with self-reported cardiomyopathy aged 16-30 years (M = 24.68, SD = 3.83) recruited through Italian Cardiomyopathies Association. Participants completed a survey including socio-demographic and disease-related data, and two self-report measures assessing disease acceptance and perceived social support from family, friends, and partners. Hierarchical regression analysis was performed to evaluate the association between different facets of perceived social support and disease acceptance, controlling for disease-related data. Results: The final model accounted for 16.2% of the variance in disease acceptance. Among the variables considered, higher perceived family support was associated with greater disease acceptance, whereas the presence of an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator was associated with lower disease acceptance. Conclusions: These preliminary findings suggest that the social context, particularly family relationships, may be relevant to disease acceptance during late adolescence and young adulthood. Family-focused support may represent a useful component of transition care aimed at promoting adaptation and self-management in young people with cardiomyopathy.