Characteristics associated with the level of caregiver burden

Objective: The concept of “caregiver burden” is mentioned as subjective and objective unfavorable outcomes caused by the care giving such as psychological and physical health problems, economic and social problems, and disruption in family relations. The level of burden was shown to be affected by the features of the illness and the patient as well as by intrinsic factors of the caregiver. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association of caregiver burden with the characteristics of the caregivers and the psychotic patients.

Methods: Thirty-three patients, who had been recorded in Çorum Community Mental Health Center (CMHC) with the diagnosis of psychotic disorders (schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, non-organic psychosis) and their caregivers were recruited in this study. A sociodemographic data form, Scale for the Assessments of Positive Symptoms (SAPS), Scale for the Assessments of Negative Symptoms (SANS), Clinic Global Impressions (CGI), Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF), Side Effect Rating (UKU), Hospital Anxiety and Depression, Beck Anxiety and Depression, Short Form 36 (SF 36) and Zarit Caregiver Burden Scales were used for the evaluation of the patients and caregivers.

Results: Sociodemographic characteristics of the patients and their caregivers are shown in Table 1 and Table 2. Caregiver burden was found to be positively correlated with the age (p=0.03), Scores of the Beck Anxiety (p=0.03) and Depression (p=0.006) scales, anxiety (p=0.001) and depression (p=0.009) subscales of HAD and negatively related with education level of the caregivers (p=0.007), physical functioning (p=0.005), role limitation due to physical problems (p=0.042), bodily pain (p=0.002), vitality (p=0.00) and social functioning (p=0.00) subscales of SF-36. Those correlations were statistically significant and weak. Burden of the caregivers whose patients were smoking was found to be significantly higher than that of the non-smokers (p=0.04).

Conclusion: The level of caregiver burden was not significantly different in patients, who attended regular follow-up in the center compared to the patients who did not. This finding was attributed to the small number of patients in the present study. The finding that the quality of life decreases with increasing burden and higher incidence of depression and anxiety findings is consistent with the literature. A positive correlation was found between the age of caregiver and the level of burden and this finding was attributed to the decrease in the physical strength. Negative correlation was found between the age and the level of burden, and this was attributed to the difficulties in accepting the disease and treatment commonly experienced at the initial exacerbations of the disease.