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In the following article, in my opinion, if we substitute the word "Parkinson's" where heart attack is mentioned, and relate it to a hospitalized PWP (or persons with almost any other major chronic disease), we'll see how very important ongoing emotional support is for those who are living with chronic disease and are hospitalized. There might be a difference in the mentioned statistical NUMBERS by a bit in substituting one disease name with another, but not in the heartfelt NEED for emotional support when's alone in the hospital. Support that Parkie hospitalized family member or friend!!! (and read on) Barb Mallut [log in to unmask] ------------------------------------------------------------ Being There for Heart Victims Being there for an elderly relative or friend hospitalized with heart ailments can mean everything -- especially if the person involved is a woman. A study in the Journal of the American Heart Association says the risk of a fatal attack or other cardiac problems among pre-hospitalized heart disease victims is three times higher if they don't have adequate emotional support. And for elderly women lacking such support the risk was a whopping eight-fold higher, Yale University researchers say. The scientists studied more than 290 men and women heart patients ranging in age from 75 to 84. An American Heart Association spokesman says the study shows the "absence of emotional support was as important as many risk factors -- such as a history of heart attack or left ventricular ejection fraction, a measure of the heart's pumping function."