Objective: This study had a two-fold aim: (i) to assess how characteristics of informal caregivers and people with PD affect caregiver burden and (ii) to explore how informal caregivers perceive the impact of PD on their life and caregiver burden.
Background: Providing informal care for a person with PD can be a demanding process affecting several dimension of caregiver’s life and causing burden. Understanding the factors that contribute to caregiver burdens are necessary to develop tailored health care innovations that aim to reduce the perceived burden.
Method: A mixed methods approach is applied in which survey data were used to assess determinants of burden followed by qualitative interviews to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of Parkinson’s disease on informal caregivers life.
Results: Quantitative results yielded a low caregiver burden in the study population with coping strategies of informal caregivers being the main predictor. Qualitative results revealed five main themes associated with caregiver burden: dealing with cognitive impairment, psychological and emotional well-being, impact on everyday life, impact on the relationships, and concerns about the future.
Conclusion: Caring for a person with PD has a significant impact on the life of informal caregivers, but might quantitative measures not be sufficient to cover all important aspects of the multidimensional concept of burden.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
AD. van Halteren, WM. Kapelle, CJ. Sederel, MJ. Meinders, M. Munneke, BRB. Bloem, SKL. Darweesh. Caregiver’s burden in Parkinson’s disease: A mixed methods study [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2022; 37 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/caregivers-burden-in-parkinsons-disease-a-mixed-methods-study/. Accessed June 15, 2025.« Back to 2022 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/caregivers-burden-in-parkinsons-disease-a-mixed-methods-study/