The outcomes of informal caregivers of survivors of critical illness likely depend
on patient characteristics, which may change over time. To date, few studies have
examined patient-specific predictors of post-ICU informal caregiver burden, and none
has tested whether predictors vary after hospital discharge.
We designed a prospective, longitudinal observational study, enrolling 48 patient-caregiver
dyads from four ICUs in a university hospital. Informal caregiver depression symptoms
were measured with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale. Lifestyle
disruption was measured with the Activity Restriction Scale. Linear regression models
were built to test for patient- and caregiver-specific predictors of depression symptoms
and lifestyle disruption 2, 6, and 12 months after ICU admission.
Patients had a mean (SD) age of 52.5 (19.7) years, 67% were men, median (interquartile
range) Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation score was 52 (38.5, 65). The
caregivers had a mean (SD) age of 52.8 (12.8) years, 91.2% were women, and 48% were
spouses. Predictors of caregiver depression symptoms were patient gender (men) at
2 and 12 months and tracheostomy at 12 months. Predictors of lifestyle disruption
were patient education (more common among high school graduates) and patient gender
(men) at 2 months, and tracheostomy, functional dependency, and patient gender (men)
at 12 months.
The determinants of post-ICU informal caregiver burden likely depend on characteristics
of the patient as well as the caregiver and may vary over time. Further research is
necessary to better understand the longitudinal determinants of burden in order to
develop more effective caregiver interventions.