Assessing the Implications of Alzheimer’s Diseases on Caregivers

Introduction

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most prevalent form of dementia, with over ten million cases per year, equivalent to a case per 3.2 seconds (Alzheimer’s Disease International, 2023). While much attention has been given to AD patients regarding their quality of life, little attention is afforded to their caregivers. Understanding the effect of AD caregiving is important for possible interventions to improve the quality of life for caregivers as well. This paper tests the hypothesis that caregivers of Alzheimer's and dementia patients often experience significant impacts on their mental, physical, emotional, and social well-being. Caring for individuals with these conditions can be challenging and demanding, affecting caregivers' lives.

Results and Discussion

 Aguglia et al. (2004) found that the caregivers were more likely to be female, married, and housewives. There were statistically significant differences in the physical strain recorded, with females reporting higher levels of physical strain. Caregivers are often lowly educated; if so, they are more likely to be affected by anxiety and depression than those who work outside their homes and are more educated. Higher cognitive impairment was correlated to higher anxiety and depression. Finally, the patients' low daily activity rates correlated to high caregiver burden.

 The three agree with the hypothesis that Caregivers of Alzheimer's and dementia patients often experience significant impacts on their mental, physical, emotional, and social well-being. The common theme among all studies is that caring for a patient with AD is a significant burden that increases as the patient’s health deteriorates (Aguglia et al., 2004; Pratt et al., 1985; Sansoni et al., 2013). Indeed, cognitive deterioration means there is a need for the caregiver to perform more tasks for the patients. All the studies also agree that the caregiver's health is significantly affected by caregiving, where Pratt et al. (1985) report a decline in the health of most caregivers but do not specify in what aspects.

Aguglia, E., Onor, M. L., Trevisiol, M., Negro, C., Saina, M., & Maso, E. (2004). Stress in the caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients: An experimental investigation in ltaly. American Journal of Alzheimers Disease and Other Dementias, 19(4), 248–252. https://doi.org/10.1177/153331750401900403

Alzheimer’s Disease International. (2023). ADI - Dementia statistics. ADI - Dementia Statistics. https://www.alzint.org/about/dementia-facts-figures/dementia-statistics/#:~:text=There%20are%20over%2010%20million,new%20case%20every%203.2%20seconds.

Pratt, C. C., Schmall, V. L., Wright, S. M., & Cleland, M. (1985). Burden and Coping Strategies of Caregivers to Alzheimer’s Patients. Family Relations, 34(1), 27. https://doi.org/10.2307/583754

Sansoni, J., Anderson, K. H., Varona, L. M., & Varela, G. (2013). Caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients and factors influencing institutionalization of loved ones: some considerations on existing literature. Annali Di Igiene : Medicina Preventiva E Di Comunità, 25(3), 235–246. https://doi.org/10.7416/ai.2013.1926