Tranzo, Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Archipel Zorggroep, Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
J Alzheimers Dis. 2024;100(4):1289-1298. doi: 10.3233/JAD-230972.
Neuropsychiatric symptoms are a robust risk factor for caregiver burden in family dementia caregivers. By grouping these symptoms, clinical interpretations regarding neuropsychiatric symptoms may facilitated because different groups of symptoms may require a different approach for intervention, thereby reducing caregiver burden.
As clustering of neuropsychiatric symptoms could be clinically relevant, we aimed to explore the effects of these clusters on burden in family dementia caregivers.
152 family dementia caregivers were included. Caregiver burden was measured using the Ervaren Druk door Informele Zorg (EDIZ)/Self-Perceived Pressure from Informal Care, a Dutch questionnaire. Caregivers also reported the neuropsychiatric symptoms and functional impairments in daily activities of the people with dementia they cared for. Multiple regression analyses were used in this cross-sectional study.
Adjusted for functional impairments and sociodemographic variables, neuropsychiatric symptoms were associated with more caregiver burden (p < 0.001). However, this association did not differ between the three neuropsychiatric symptom clusters (p = 0.745).
Neuropsychiatric symptoms were associated with more family caregiver burden, but no conclusive evidence was found that this association differed for the three clusters. Clustering of neuropsychiatric symptoms is, however, worth exploring further in future studies with more participants. If specific links are found, these could be targeted in clinical practice in order to prevent, reduce and/or postpone caregiver burden.
神经精神症状是家庭痴呆症照顾者 caregiver负担的一个强有力的风险因素。通过对这些症状进行分组，可以更方便地对神经精神症状进行临床解读，因为不同症状组可能需要不同的干预方法，从而减轻 caregiver的负担。
由于神经精神症状的聚类可能具有临床意义，我们旨在探讨这些聚类对家庭痴呆症照顾者负担的影响。
共纳入 152 名家庭痴呆症照顾者。使用荷兰问卷 Ervaren Druk door Informele Zorg（EDIZ）/Self-Perceived Pressure from Informal Care 来衡量 caregiver负担。照顾者还报告了他们照顾的痴呆症患者的神经精神症状和日常生活活动中的功能障碍。本横断面研究采用了多元回归分析。
在调整了功能障碍和社会人口学变量后，神经精神症状与更多的 caregiver负担相关（p<0.001）。然而，这一关联在三个神经精神症状聚类之间没有差异（p=0.745）。
神经精神症状与更多的家庭 caregiver负担相关，但没有确凿的证据表明这种关联在三个聚类之间存在差异。然而，神经精神症状聚类值得在未来有更多参与者的研究中进一步探讨。如果发现了特定的联系，可以在临床实践中针对这些联系进行干预，以预防、减轻和/或推迟 caregiver负担。
