Agreement and differences regarding family functioning between patients with acquired brain injury and their partners

Figures & data

Table 1. Patients’ and partners’ characteristics (N = 77 dyads).

Characteristics	Patients	Partners
Age in years, mean (SD)	59.4 (8.7)	57.9 (9.1)
Male sex, n (%)	51 (66.2)	26 (33.8)
Higher education, n (%)	34 (44.2)	24 (31.2)
Employed before ABI, n (%)	53 (68.8)	47 (61.0)
Type of ABI, n (%)
Ischemic stroke	45 (58.4)
Hemorrhagic stroke	22 (28.6)
Traumatic brain injury	8 (10.4)
Oncology post-surgery	1 (1.3)
Encephalitis	1 (1.3)
Time since ABI in days, median (IQR)	80.0 (48.5–133.0)
Living at home, n (%)	43 (55.8)
Communication restrictions (UCO < 4), n (%)	5 (6.5)
Anxiety (HADS-A) [0–21], median (IQR)	5.0 (3.0–7.0)	5.0 (3.0–8.0)^a
Anxiety (HADS-A) > 7, n (%)	18 (23.4)	21 (27.3)^a
Depression (HADS-D) [0–21], median (IQR)	5.0 (2.0–8.0)	4.0 (2.0–7.0)
Depression (HADS-D) > 7, n (%)	25 (32.5)	17 (22.1)
Caregiver burden (CSI) [0–13], mean (SD)		6.9 (2.6)
Caregiver burden (CSI) ≥ 7, n %		48 (62.3)

a 1 missing; FAD-GF = McMaster Family Assessment Device-General Functioning; ABI = Acquired Brain Injury; UCO = Utrecht Communication Observation; HADS = Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale; CSI = Caregiver Strain Index

Table 2. Characteristics of patients and partners reporting effective versus ineffective family functioning (N = 77).

	Patients		Partners
	Effective family functioning (N = 63)	Ineffective family functioning (N = 14)	Effective family functioning (N = 52)	Ineffective family functioning (N = 25)
Age in years, mean (SD)	59.4 (8.4)	59.3 (10.2)	58.7 (9.3)	56.1 (8.6)
Male sex, n (%)	40 (63.5)	11 (78.6)	21 (40.4)	5 (20.0)
Higher education, n (%)	27 (42.9)	7 (50.0)	16 (30.8)	8 (32.0)
Employed, n (%)	44 (69.8)	9 (64.3)	29 (55.8)	18 (72.0)
Time since ABI in days, median (IQR)	73.0 (46.0–131.0)	110.5 (72.3–137.8)	61.0 (37.0–117.3)	106.0 (80.5–153.0)**
Living at home, n (%)	32 (50.8)	11 (78.6)	21 (40.4)	22 (88.0)**
Anxiety (HADS-A) [0–21], median (IQR) (n = 76)	5.0 (3.0–7.0)	4.5 (2.8–9.8)	4.0 (3.0–6.0)	9.0 (5.0–11.5)**
Depression (HADS-D) [0–21], median (IQR)	5.0 (2.0–8.0)	5.0 (3.5–8.3)	3.0 (1.0–6.0)	7.0 (4.0–10.0)**
Caregiver burden (CSI) [0–13], mean (SD)			6.2 (2.4)	8.4 (2.4)**

*significant at p < 0.05; **significant at p < 0.01; HADS = Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale; CSI = Caregiver Strain Index

Figure 1. Bland-Altman plot of FAD-GF scores from patients and partners.

Table 3. Agreement and differences on FAD-GF items within patient-partner dyads.

	Patients	Partners	Agreement within dyads		Differences within dyads
FAD-GF Items	Ineffective family functioning (%)	Ineffective family functioning (%)	Absolute agreement (%)	Weighted kappa (95% CI)	Wilcoxon signed-rank, p-value
1. Planning family activities is difficult because we misunderstand each other	7.8	14.3	50.6	0.21 (0.01–0.41)	0.053
2. In times of crisis we can turn to each other for support	5.2	13.0	59.7	0.29 (0.07–0.50)	0.031*
3. We cannot talk to each other about the sadness we feel	5.2	14.3	51.9	0.22 (0.00–0.45)	0.026*
4. Individuals are accepted for what they are	7.8	11.7	58.4	0.45 (0.24–0.66)	0.170
5. We avoid discussing our fears and concerns	20.8	15.6	36.4	0.15 (−0.08–0.37)	0.509
6. We can express feelings to each other	10.4	11.7	54.5	0.34 (0.12–0.55)	0.588
7. There are lots of bad feelings in the family	5.2	6.5	59.7	0.37 (0.16–0.58)	0.654
8. We feel accepted for what we are	6.5	15.6	50.6	0.29 (0.04–0.53)	0.022*
9. Making decisions is a problem for our family	3.9	9.1	44.2	0.10 (−0.07–0.28)	0.097
10. We are able to make decisions about how to solve problems	3.9	2.6	62.3	0.27 (0.00–0.54)	0.157
11. We don’t get along well together	2.6	3.9	71.4	0.12 (−0.09–0.33)	0.297
12. We confide in each other	3.9	7.8	55.8	0.21 (−0.04–0.46)	0.180

*significant at p < 0.05