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[The emotional burden in caregiving relatives of stroke patients]
K Kitze1, D Y von Cramon, G Wilz
1Abteilung für Medizinische Psychologie und Medizinische Soziologie, Universitätsklinikum Leipzig.
Insights
Spouses of stroke patients experience significant anxiety and depression. Their emotional burden is linked to their perception of the patient's disability, not the stroke's medical severity.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Rehabilitation Medicine
Background:
- Stroke significantly impacts patients and their families, leading to sustained psychosocial burdens.
- Spouses of stroke survivors often experience considerable emotional distress, including anxiety and depression.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the emotional burden (depression and anxiety) in spouses of stroke patients.
- To examine the correlation between spouses' emotional burden and stroke severity (medical assessment and perceived disability).
- To identify independent predictors of emotional burden in stroke patient spouses.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) to assess emotional burden in 82 spouses.
- Assessed stroke severity using the Barthel Index (BI) and patient impairment via the Patient Competency Rating (PCR).
- Conducted assessments during admission to inpatient or partially inpatient rehabilitation centers.
Main Results:
- Spouses of stroke victims reported higher anxiety scores than the general population.
- Spouses' assessment of stroke victim disability directly correlated with their own psychosocial burden.
- Spouse's gender and their subjective perception of the stroke victim's disability were significant predictors of emotional burden.
Conclusions:
- Spouse's perception of disability is a key factor in their emotional burden, outweighing objective medical severity.
- Identified a high-risk group of spouses based on their perceived burden and subjective assessments.
- Gender and perceived disability are crucial factors for understanding and potentially mitigating spouse emotional burden post-stroke.
Abstract:
Sustained psychosocial burdens as a consequence of stroke not only affect the stroke victim but frequently their spouses and significant others as well. The present study analyses the extent of emotional burden in spouses of stroke patients (Beck Depression Inventory, BDI and Beck Anxiety Inventory, BAI), examining the relationships of emotional burden in spouses with the medical assessment regarding stroke severity (Barthel Index, BI) and with the spouses' own perceptions of the stroke patients' impairment (Patient Competency Rating, PCR) as well as determining the factors that were independently associated with emotional burden in spouses. 82 spouses of stroke patients are examined in our study. The questioning was realised on admission into inpatient or partially inpatient rehabilitation centres. Initial results indicated that relatives of stroke victims have higher scores for anxiety compared to the general population. The assessment of disability in the stroke victims by their spouses correlates directly with the psychosocial burden of the spouses. By using this methodology, a high-risk group of spouses could be identified. The predictors of emotional burden in spouses (Anxiety and Depression) are gender of spouse and the spouse's subjective perception of disability in the stroke victim. The age of spouses and medical assessment of the severity of stroke on the other hand have no predictive value for the extent of emotional burden in spouses.