Burden and quality of life of caregivers of individuals with stroke in the Western Amazon.

Abstract

Introduction: Stroke causes functional limitations and requires care from informal caregivers, who often experience caregiver burden and compromised quality of life.

Objectives: We aimed to assess the burden and quality of life of caregivers of patients with stroke and correlate burden with sociodemographic and clinical aspects, quality of life of both the caregivers and the patients, and the functional independence of the patients.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 136 caregivers and their patients from Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil. A caregiver burden scale (Zarit Burden Interview), a quality of life instrument (36-item Short-Form Health Survey), and a functional independence questionnaire (Barthel Index) were used. In addition, sociodemographic and clinical data on caregivers were collected.

Results: Caregiver burden was moderate-to-severe in 78.7% and severe in 39.7%. All domains of caregiver quality of life were compromised except functional capacity. According to the logistic regression, caregiver burden was most associated with home ownership and living with the patient (p = 0.0046), low caregiver scores in the physical (p = 0.0007) and mental health (p = 0.0009) domains, and moderate-to-severe patient dependence (p = 0.0040).

Conclusions: Caregiver burden was associated with home ownership and living with the patient, low physical and mental health scores, and moderate-to-severe patient dependence.