Assessment of the burden of caregiving for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the effect of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on the quality of life of caregivers.

DESIGN AND METHODS

A cross-sectional study was carried out with forty-two COPD patients and their primary caregivers. Patients were assessed with the medical outcome survey short form (SF-36), the physical and mental component summary (PCS and MCS), Saint George's respiratory questionnaire (SGRQ), 6-min walking test, and spirometric and blood gas measurements. Caregivers were assessed using the medical outcome survey short form (SF-36), the physical and mental component summary (PCS and MCS), the 5-point Likert scale for measuring caregiver/patient relationships and the caregiver burden scale (CB scale).

RESULTS

The majority of caregivers were female (85.3%), married (59%) and had low levels of income and schooling. The mean age was 51.6+/-16 years. Mean caregiver PCS and MCS scores were 45.9+/-10 and 46+/-12, while the mean total burden score was 1.79+/-0.6. The regression analysis showed caregiver/patient relationship quality, caregiver MCS scores and patient PCS scores to be important predictors of burden and explained 63% of the variance.

CONCLUSIONS

COPD causes a significant impact on the quality of life of caregivers. The two most important predictors of COPD burden are the relationship between caregivers and patients and caregiver MCS scores.