Caregivers’ Burden in Parkinson’s Disease: A Study on Related Features and Attachment Styles

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic progressive neurological disease clinically characterized by motor and non-motor symptoms, with an increasing impact on the quality of life not only for the patient but also for the caregivers. Twenty-six primary caregivers (female = 19; mean age = 57.04, SD = 10.64) of PD patients were consecutively recruited. Several psychological aspects were verified through clinical screening tests: EQ-5D and PQoL CARER for quality of life, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Caregiver Burden Inventory (CBI), Family Strain Questionnaire (FSQ), and Adult Attachment Questionnaire. We found that the burden was generally higher in cohabiting female caregivers of patients with dementia as compared with not cohabiting caregivers. Severe burden emerged in 7.7% of the participants according to the PQoL. The mean score of this scale was higher in cohabiting caregivers. Finally, according to the CBI, 19.2% of the participants suffered from severe burden, with mean scores of the CIB-S and CIB-E subscales higher in cohabitants. Our study highlights the need to investigate more thoroughly the burden of caregivers of PD patients and its associated factors, and to pay more attention to the physical and psychological health of caregivers to improve their quality of life.