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P2‐286: Caregiving experience for people with lewy body dementia: Spouse versus adult child
Author(s) -
Ashwill Robert,
Mulhall Stephanie,
Johnson David Kevin,
Galvin James E.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
alzheimer's and dementia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.713
H-Index - 118
eISSN - 1552-5279
pISSN - 1552-5260
DOI - 10.1016/j.jalz.2015.06.827
Subject(s) - spouse , dementia , lewy body , quality of life (healthcare) , psychology , clinical psychology , severe dementia , feeling , caregiver stress , family caregivers , dementia with lewy bodies , disease , psychiatry , gerontology , medicine , social psychology , sociology , anthropology , psychotherapist , pathology
Background:Dementia is a common condition that affects not only older adults but their family caregivers as well. Approximately 5.2 million Americans affected by Alzheimer’s disease (AD) the most common dementia while another 1.3 million individuals have Lewy Body Dementia (LBD), the second most common cause of dementia. Nearly 60% of dementia caregivers rate emotional stress of caregiving as high or very high, however there may be significant differences in the way spouse and adult child caregivers experience the process and this experience may also differ by dementia etiology. Methods: Familial, Spouse (n1⁄4255) and Adult Children (n1⁄4121), Caregivers of individuals with Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) completed a range of self-report online surveys: Condensed Ryff Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWBS), Marwit Meuser Caregiver Grief Inventory Short Form (MMCGI-SF), Quality of Life – Dementia Caregivers (QOLCG), Revised Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist (RMBPC), and Zarit Burden Interview Short Form. Results:Compared to spouses, adult child caregivers self-reported significantly higher burden, lower quality of life, less mastery of their environment, and lower feelings of selfacceptance (all Fs 4.68, p<.05). Patient depressive symptoms and disruptive behaviors were both more frequently identified and reported (both Fs 4.78, p<0.05) by adult children. They also reported becoming more upset by depressive symptoms F(1,254)1⁄48.08, p1⁄40.005 than did spousal caregivers. In general, adult children found the caregiving experience more upsetting, more difficult to sustain, andmore stressful.Conclusions:Adult children report greater burden, loss of control and lower self-acceptance than spouses. They are more likely to maintain a job and caregive for children of their own. Caring for a parent adds a responsibility that raises their stress and anxiety leading to increased burden. As a result they report sharper decreases in levels of psychological well-being, quality of life, leaving them more reactive to problem behaviors. Alternatively, there may be some effect by reluctance of spousal caregivers to talk about their feelings of caregiving out of feelings of responsibility to their patient-spouse, but as our quality of life and psychological well-being scales assess the caregivers own state this caveat may only effect assessment of the direct care interactions.