The association between medical diagnosis and caregiver burden: a cross-sectional study of recipients of informal support and caregivers from the general population study ‘Good Aging in Skåne’, Sweden

Background: Different kinds of chronic diseases might imply different dimensions of caregiver burden, not previously described among the caregivers to recipients from the general elder population. Aim: The main objective was to examine differences in burden between the 343 caregivers to persons with different diagnoses. Methods: A group of elderly recipients of informal care (n = 343) from the general population study ‘Good Aging in Skåne’ (GÅS) Sweden, were divided into five diagnostic groups: dementia (n = 90), heart and lung diseases (n = 48), stroke (n = 62), fractures (n = 66), depression (n = 40) and the group “other”, consisting of different diagnoses (n = 37) according to ICD-10. Differences in burden were analyzed using the Caregiver Burden Scale (CBS), a 22-item scale consisting of five dimensions: general strain, isolation, disappointment, emotional involvement and environmental burden. A total burden index comprises the mean of all the 22 items and a higher score indicates a higher burden. Results: The most common diagnosis associated to caregiving was dementia and fracture and the median hours weekly for informal support with instrumental ADL for the five diagnostic groups ranged from 7 to 45 h for spouses and from 4 to 7 h for parents. The highest proportion of caregivers scoring high total burden was seen among recipients with dementia (50%) and depression (38%); the OR for high total burden for the dementia group was 4.26 (2.29-7.92) and depression group 2.38 (1.08-5.24) adjusted for covariates like age, gender and ADL and these two groups had higher self-perception of burden in all the dimensions, especially the dimension’s emotional burden and strain. Conclusion: Informal support constitutes a substantial time for instrumental ADL for the diseased elders. Caregivers to persons with dementia and depression experience high burden.