A meta-analysis of the association between caregiver burden and the dependent’s illness

ABSTRACT

The caregiver burden is frequently used to refer to the physical and psychological problems that may arise from caring for a dependent relative. We conducted a meta-analysis to see whether Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) scores differed by dependent’s pathology. Results from 125 studies showed that caregivers of individuals with a physical disability have an estimated mean ZBI score (±SE) of 27 ± 2.6 – a score significantly lower than for caregivers of persons with dementia or cognitive impairment (34.1 ± 1.1), mental illness (32.6 ± 1.7), or Alzheimer’s (32.5 ± 1). Our analysis of Alzheimer’s revealed differences among cases of mildly (25.8 ± 5.2), moderately (35.6 ± 7.8), and severely (42.6 ± 7.9) afflicted dependents.

KEYWORDS:

• Caregiver burden
• Zarit Burden Interview
• long-term care

Acknowledgments

For statistical support we are grateful to María P. Pata from the Biostatech, Advice, Training & Innovation of Biostatistics, S.L.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary material

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Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and FEDER [RTI2018-099403-B-I00].