#5602 Depression and Anxiety in Family Caregivers of End Stage Kidney Disease Patients in Greece: A Comparison Between Dialysis and Kidney Transplantation

Abstract

Background and Aims Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is considered a high-stress disease because of its chronicity, co-morbidity, and lifelong treatment. Family members are often the main caregivers of end stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients and they are involved in various roles. Caregivers of ESKD patients experience emotional stress, anxiety and depression as they support their family members throughout the disease and treatment. This cross-sectional study aimed to assess depression and anxiety in caregivers of ESKD patients and to compare these disorders between caregivers of hemodialysis (HD) patients’ and kidney transplant recipients (KTR), as well as to investigate potential social-demographic parameters associated with caregivers’ depression and anxiety. Method A total of 342 participants (171 couples of patients and caregivers) were recruited. Structured interviews and self-completed questionnaires were obtained from HD patients, KTR (138 HD patients and 33 KTR) and their caregivers. The Beck Depression Inventory and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2 scales were used as screening tools. Depression scores were classified into four levels based on the level of severity (low, mild, moderate, severe). The collected data were encoded and analyzed using ΙΒΜ SPSS version 25 and R Statistical Software. Results Mean age of caregivers was 58 years and the majority were females (67.2%). Total anxiety score was high (Mdn = 3) with a mildly increased score of depression (Mdn = 9.5). Caregivers’ anxiety and depressive symptoms were significantly associated with gender, duration of caregiving, educational level, financial status, and caregivers’ age (p<0.01 for all). Caregivers’ depression and anxiety were also, related to the type of patients’ treatment (Table 1). HD caregivers reported significantly higher anxiety scores (Mdn = 3(2-5)) in comparison to KTR caregivers (Mdn = 2(2-4)) (p = 0.048) (Table 2). Moreover, HD caregivers revealed higher (Mdn = 11(0-46)) levels of depression than the KTR group (Mdn = 6 (0-25)) (p = 0.049) (Table 3). Conclusion Based on the findings of this study, the type of ESKD treatment displayed an important role in caregivers’ anxiety and depression symptoms, with KTR caregivers having the best scores. In particular, KTR caregivers appeared to have lower levels of depression and anxiety than caregivers of HD patients.