Pruchno R A, Potashnik S L
Philadelphia Geriatric Center, PA 19141.
J Am Geriatr Soc. 1989 Aug;37(8):697-705. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1989.tb02230.x.
The self-reported physical and mental health of 315 persons caring for a spouse who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease or a related disorder was compared with general population norms for existing data bases controlling for age and gender. Results suggest that across all indicators of mental health, spouse caregivers are more depressed, express higher levels of negative affect, are more likely to use psychotropic drugs, and have more symptoms of psychological distress than the general population. In terms of physical health, caregivers report higher than expected rates of diabetes, arthritis, ulcers, and anemia, yet they use medical services at rates which are similar or lower than those reported by the general population. Since no simultaneous control group was studied, these results suggest, but do not prove, the presence of differences between caregivers and non-caregivers.
对315名照料被诊断患有阿尔茨海默病或相关病症配偶的人员进行自我报告的身心健康状况调查，并与现有数据库中按年龄和性别控制的一般人群标准进行比较。结果表明，在所有心理健康指标方面，配偶照料者比一般人群更抑郁，表现出更高水平的负面影响，更有可能使用精神药物，并且有更多心理困扰症状。在身体健康方面，照料者报告的糖尿病、关节炎、溃疡和贫血发病率高于预期，然而他们使用医疗服务的比率与一般人群报告的比率相似或更低。由于未对同时设立的对照组进行研究，这些结果表明但未证明照料者与非照料者之间存在差异。
