Analysis of caregiver burden of relative caregivers of multiple myeloma patients and its influencing factors

Abstract

Objective To investigate the current situation of caregiver burden of relative caregivers of multiple myeloma patients, and to analyze its influencing factors. Methods Cross-section investigation method was used in the study. A total of 125 multiple myeloma patients and their relative caregivers, who accepted treatment in the hematology department of He'nan Provincial People's Hospital from December 2015 to March 2017 were selected by convenience sampling method. The general situation investigation questionnaire, Zarit Caregiver Burden Inventory (ZBI) , Barthel Index (BI) , Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS) and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) were adopted in the investigation. PASW 18.0 software was adopted for statistical analysis of the data. Results The ZBI score of the relative caregivers of multiple myeloma patients was (57.01±15.36) , and 86.4% of the caregivers' scored at a moderate level and over. The differences of ZBI scores of the caregivers with different educational background, family average monthly income, caring time and the different numbers of complications in patients were statistically significant (t/F/H=3.924, 9.656, 8.062, 20.608; P<0.05) . The average score of BI in multiple myeloma patients was (53.56±8.30) , with moderate dysfunction, which was negatively correlated with the total score of ZBI and the scores of its all dimensions (P<0.01) . The average score of SSRS in the caregivers was (48.18±8.53) , with a high level of social support, and the average score of CD-RISC was (64.50±9.41) , the two of which were both negatively correlated with the total score of ZBI and the scores of its all dimensions (P<0.05) . As indicated by the results of multiple linear regression analysis, the complication number and self-care ability of the patients as well as the average monthly family income, caregiving time, social support and mental elasticity of the relative caregivers could be included in the regression equation, which explained 40.1% of the variance. Conclusions The caregiver burden of patients with multiple myeloma is relatively heavy. The complication number and self-care ability of the patients as well as the average monthly family income, caregiving time, social support and mental elasticity of the relative caregivers are the influencing factors of caregiver burden. Key words: Cross-sectional studies; Multiple myeloma; Caregivers; Caregiver burden; Influencing factors