Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T15:52:55.520Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Predictive factors associated with psychological distress of caregivers of people with dementia in Japan: a cross-sectional study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2017

Ryo Shikimoto
Affiliation:
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan Sakuragaoka Memorial Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
Mitsuhiro Sado*
Affiliation:
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
Akira Ninomiya
Affiliation:
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
Kimio Yoshimura
Affiliation:
Department of Health Policy and Management, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
Baku Ikeda
Affiliation:
Department of Health Policy and Management, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
Toshiaki Baba
Affiliation:
Department of Mental Health, School of Public Health, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
Masaru Mimura
Affiliation:
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Dr. Mitsuhiro Sado, Department of Neuropsychiatry, Keio University School of Medicine, Shinanomachi 35, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 160-8582, Japan. Phone: +81-3-3353-1211x62454; Fax: +81-3-5379-0187. Email: mitsusado@keio.jp.

Abstract

Background:

Caregivers of people with dementia are likely to have psychological distress that sometimes results in mental health problems, such as depression. The objective of this study was to examine some predictive factors that are thought to be associated with psychological distress of caregivers of people with dementia in Japan.

Methods:

Design: A cross-sectional study. Sample: As part of a study to estimate the cost of dementia in Japan, 1,437 people with dementia-caregiver dyads were enrolled in the current informal care time study. The measurements in the study included were the basic characteristics of the caregivers and the people with dementia, and the informal care time during a week.

Analysis:

Factors that predict caregivers’ psychological distress, which was measured by Kessler's Psychological Distress scale (K6) score, were evaluated using univariate and multivariate regression analyses.

Results:

Approximately 69% of the caregivers recorded a K6 score higher than 4, while 18% scored higher than 12. According to the results of the logistic regression analysis (cut-off 4/5), the K6 score was associated with mental and comorbid diseases of people with dementia, informal care time, its lower number of caregivers, and the level of nursing care. According to the results of logistic regression analysis (cut-off 12/13), the K6 score was associated with mental symptoms and comorbid disease of people with dementia, sex of caregivers, informal care time, and its lower number of caregivers.

Conclusion:

Our findings indicated that the psychological distress of the caregivers is quite high and that informal care time and behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia are associated with it. These results corroborate with previous findings.

Type
Original Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © International Psychogeriatric Association 2017 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Alspaugh, M. E., Stephens, M. A., Townsend, A. L., Zarit, S. H. and Greene, R. (1999). Longitudinal patterns of risk for depression in dementia caregivers: objective and subjective primary stress as predictors. Psychology and Aging, 14, 3443.Google Scholar
Alzheimer's Disease International (2015). World Alzheimer report 2015: the global impact of dementia. [pdf] Alzheimer's Disease International. Available at: https://www.alz.co.uk/research/WorldAlzheimerReport2015.pdf; last accessed 19 August 2016.Google Scholar
Clyburn, L. D., Stones, M. J., Hadjistavropoulos, T. and Tuokko, H. (2000). Predicting caregiver burden and depression in Alzheimer's disease. Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 55, S2S13.Google Scholar
Covinsky, K. E. et al. (2003). Patient and caregiver characteristics associated with depression in caregivers of patients with dementia. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 18, 10061014.Google Scholar
Cucciare, M. A., Gray, H., Azar, A., Jimenez, D. and Gallagher-Thompson, D. (2010). Exploring the relationship between physical health, depressive symptoms, and depression diagnoses in Hispanic dementia caregivers. Aging & Mental Health, 14, 274282.Google Scholar
Family_Caregiver_Alliance 2009 (2012). Family caregiver alliance. 2009 national policy statement. [pdf] Available at: https://www.caregiver.org/national-policy-statement; last accessed 24 August 2016.Google Scholar
Furukawa, T. A. et al. (2008). The performance of the Japanese version of the K6 and K10 in the world mental health survey Japan. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 17, 152158.Google Scholar
Government of Japan (2015). Annual report on the aging society: 2015. [pdf] Available at: http://www8.cao.go.jp/kourei/english/annualreport/index-wh.html; last accessed 24 August 2016.Google Scholar
Haley, W. E. et al. (1995). Psychological, social, and health impact of caregiving: a comparison of black and white dementia family caregivers and noncaregivers. Psychology and Aging, 10, 540552.Google Scholar
Kawakami, N. et al. (2005). Twelve-month prevalence, severity, and treatment of common mental disorders in communities in Japan: preliminary finding from the World Mental Health Japan Survey 2002–2003. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 59, 441452.Google Scholar
Li, R., Cooper, C., Bradley, J., Shulman, A. and Livingston, G. (2012). Coping strategies and psychological morbidity in family carers of people with dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders, 139, 111.Google Scholar
Livingston, G. et al. (2013). Clinical effectiveness of a manual based coping strategy programme (START, STrAtegies for RelaTives) in promoting the mental health of carers of family members with dementia: pragmatic randomised controlled trial. BMJ, 347, f6276.Google Scholar
Mahoney, R., Regan, C., Katona, C. and Livingston, G. (2005). Anxiety and depression in family caregivers of people with Alzheimer disease: the LASER-AD studyAmerican Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 13, 795801.Google Scholar
Ministry of Health, L. A W., Japan (2013a). Ministory of health, labour and welfare, Japan. 2013. [pdf] Available at: http://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/houdou_kouhou/kaiken_shiryou/2013/dl/130607-01.pdf; last accessed 24 August 2016.Google Scholar
Ministry_of_Health, L. a. W., Japan (2013b). Ministory of health, labour and welfare, Japan. 2013. [pdf] Available at: http://www.mhlw.go.jp//toukei/list/45-1.html; last accessed 24 August 2016.Google Scholar
Ministry of Health, L. A. W., Japan (2016). Ministory of health, labour and welfare, Japan. 2015. [pdf] Available at: http://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/0000064084.html; last accessed 24 August 2016.Google Scholar
Ninomiya, T. (2015). Research on future projection of the population of the elderly with dementia in Japan.2015. [pdf] Available at: http://mhlw-grants.niph.go.jp/niph/search/NIDD00.do?resrchNum=201405037A; last accessed 24 August 2016.Google Scholar
Ornstein, K. and Gaugler, J. E. (2012). The problem with “problem behaviors”: a systematic review of the association between individual patient behavioral and psychological symptoms and caregiver depression and burden within the dementia patient-caregiver dyad. International Psychogeriatric, 24, 15361552.Google Scholar
Ornstein, K., Gaugler, J. E., Devanand, D. P., Scarmeas, N., Zhu, C. and Stern, Y. (2013). The differential impact of unique behavioral and psychological symptoms for the dementia caregiver: how and why do patients' individual symptom clusters impact caregiver depressive symptoms? American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry, 21, 12771286.Google Scholar
Pearlin, L. I., Mullan, J. T., Semple, S. J. and Skaff, M. M. (1990). Caregiving and the stress process: an overview of concepts and their measures. Gerontologist, 30, 583594.Google Scholar
Pinquart, M. and Sorensen, S. (2003). Associations of stressors and uplifts of caregiving with caregiver burden and depressive mood: a meta-analysis. Journal of Gerontology: Series B Social Sciences, 58, P112P128.Google Scholar
Pinquart, M. and Sorensen, S. (2011). Spouses, adult children, and children-in-law as caregivers of older adults: a meta-analytic comparison. Psychology & Aging, 26, 114.Google Scholar
Roth, D. L., Haley, W. E., Owen, J. E., Clay, O. J. and Goode, K. T. (2001). Latent growth models of the longitudinal effects of dementia caregiving: a comparison of African American and White family caregivers. Psychology & Aging, 16, 427436.Google Scholar
Sakurai, K., Nishi, A., Kondo, K., Yanagida, K. and Kawakami, N. (2011). Screening performance of K6/K10 and other screening instruments for mood and anxiety disorders in Japan. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 65, 434441.Google Scholar
Schoenmakers, B., Buntinx, F. and Delepeleire, J. (2010). Factors determining the impact of care-giving on caregivers of elderly patients with dementia. A systematic literature review. Maturitas, 66, 191200.Google Scholar
Schulz, R. and Beach, S. R. (1999). Caregiving as a risk factor for mortality: the caregiver health effects study. JAMA, 282, 22152219.Google Scholar
Schulz, R., Belle, S. H., Czaja, S. J., McGinnis, K. A., Stevens, A. and Zhang, S. (2004). Long-term care placement of dementia patients and caregiver health and well-being. JAMA, 292, 961967.Google Scholar
Schulz, R., O'Brien, A. T., Bookwala, J. and Fleissner, K. (1995). Psychiatric and physical morbidity effects of dementia caregiving: prevalence, correlates, and causes. Gerontologist, 35, 771791.Google Scholar
Sink, K. M., Covinsky, K. E., Barnes, D. E., Newcomer, R. J. and Yaffe, K. (2006). Caregiver characteristics are associated with neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 54, 796803.Google Scholar
Williams, I. C. (2005). Emotional health of black and white dementia caregivers: a contextual examination. Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 60, P287P295.Google Scholar