Presentation (CTI)

OBJECTIVES: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) substantially impacts not only the patients but also informal caregivers who dedicated long hours of care. While special accommodation (SpA) care offers caregivers a respite from their responsibilities, its effect towards caregiver’s burden remains unknown. This study aims to determine the burden level of informal caregivers of patients with different stages of AD and use of special accommodation (SpA) along with its predictors.
METHODS: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted by interviewing AD patients and informal caregivers recruited from 4 tertiary hospitals in Malaysia. Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) was used to estimate caregivers’ burden among community dwelling patients (n=113) and those with SpA care (n=22). Multivariate linear regression was employed to identify potential determinants of subjective caregiver burden.
RESULTS: Caregivers’ burden experienced by informal caregivers of severe community dwelling AD patients was significantly higher (p=0.024) than those with special accommodation. As AD advanced, caregivers’ burden was elevated significantly (p=0.021) from mild to severe AD among community-dwelling patients. In multivariate analysis, severe AD was found to be a significant factor in predicting caregivers’ burden (adj B=0.19, p=0.047) where spouse was associated with higher caregiver’s burden (adj B=0.026, p=0.026) compared to others.
CONCLUSIONS: The physical and social needs of informal caregivers must not be overlooked. Severe AD significantly increased caregiver burden in community dwelling patients. Spousal caregivers report a higher perceived burden compared to caregivers with other relationships. Policymakers need to recognize and address the substantial demands placed on informal caregivers by providing essential social support. Special accommodation could alleviate the burden on informal caregivers, particularly those caring for patients with severe AD.