Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, 28125Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Department of Sociology and Political Science, Center for Philosophy and Human Sciences, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil.
J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol. 2021 Sep;34(5):434-444. doi: 10.1177/0891988720933355. Epub 2020 Jun 17.
To compare the quality of life, burden, and depressive symptoms of caregivers of individuals with young-onset dementia (YOD) and late-onset dementia (LOD).
Using a cross-sectional design, a convenience sample of 110 dyads of individuals with dementia and their caregivers, all living in the community, was included. The care recipients completed assessments about cognition, quality of life, and awareness of disease. Caregivers' quality of life, resilience, depressive and anxiety symptoms, hopelessness, and burden of care were assessed.
A significant difference was found in caregivers' burden and depressive symptoms according to the age of onset. However, there was no difference in caregivers' quality of life between YOD and LOD groups. In both groups, a linear regression analysis indicated that caregivers' perspective of quality of life of care recipient and caregivers' hopelessness were associated with their quality of life. In addition, in the LOD group, caregivers' burden was associated with their perspective of the quality of life of care recipient, type of kinship, and presence of emotional problems. In the YOD group, caregivers' burden was associated with duration of caregiving role, cohabitating with care recipient, and their anxiety symptoms. Caregivers' depressive symptoms were associated with anxiety symptoms in the YOD group, whereas hopelessness was associated with caregivers' depressive symptoms in both the groups.
Our findings suggest that the factors that affect quality of life, burden, and depressive symptoms of caregivers of individuals with LOD differ from those that affect the caregivers of individuals with YOD.
比较早发性痴呆（YOD）和晚发性痴呆（LOD）患者照顾者的生活质量、负担和抑郁症状。
采用横断面设计，纳入了 110 对居住在社区的痴呆患者及其照顾者的便利样本。认知、生活质量和疾病意识评估由痴呆患者完成。照顾者的生活质量、韧性、抑郁和焦虑症状、绝望和照顾负担进行了评估。
根据发病年龄，照顾者的负担和抑郁症状存在显著差异。然而，YOD 和 LOD 组之间照顾者的生活质量没有差异。在两组中，线性回归分析表明，照顾者对被照顾者生活质量的看法和照顾者的绝望感与他们的生活质量相关。此外，在 LOD 组中，照顾者的负担与他们对被照顾者生活质量的看法、亲属关系类型和存在情绪问题有关。在 YOD 组中，照顾者的负担与照顾角色的持续时间、与被照顾者同住以及他们的焦虑症状有关。照顾者的抑郁症状与 YOD 组的焦虑症状有关，而绝望感与两组的照顾者的抑郁症状有关。
我们的研究结果表明，影响 LOD 患者照顾者生活质量、负担和抑郁症状的因素与影响 YOD 患者照顾者的因素不同。
