Spousal Caregivers of Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery Patients: Differences between Caregivers with Low vs. High Caregiving Demands

Caregiver burden, family adaptation, partnership, growth, affection, and resolve, anxiety levels, and perceived social support in relatives of patients with open heart surgery

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between caregiver burden, family adaptation, partnership, growth, affection, and resolve score, anxiety levels, and the perceived social support of the relatives of patients who had open heart surgery.

METHODS

Volunteers among the relatives of patients who had open heart surgery in our cardiovascular surgery clinic and were followed up in the first 3 months were included in the study. The cardiovascular surgeons recorded the sociodemographic data of the relatives of the patients and directed them to a psychiatry clinic for further evaluation. The caregiver burden scale, family adaptation, partnership, growth, affection, and resolve scale, anxiety level scale, and perceived social support scale were applied to the relatives of the patients who participated in the study.

RESULTS

Within the scope of the study, a total of 51 individuals, 29.4% (n=15) men and 70.6% (n=36) women, were included in the evaluation. The participants' ages ranged from 32 to 68 years, with an average age of 48 years. There was a statistically significant relationship between the caregiving burden scale score and the scale scores other than age (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in terms of caregiving burden scale score, working status, physical and psychological problems, changes in home life, and changes in family relationships (p<0.05).

CONCLUSION

The fact that the need for security and intimacy is related to anxiety and depression can be interpreted as the caregiving problems of the relatives of the patients who think that their patients are safe and feel closer to the intensive care personnel will decrease. Their depression and anxiety levels will also decrease.

Caregiver Distress and Coronary Artery Disease: Prevalence, Risk, Outcomes, and Management

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Caregivers of patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) are integral to the health care system and contribute substantially to patients' management. The purpose of this review is to provide a narrative synthesis of existing research on caregiving for patients who experienced an acute coronary syndrome (MI/unstable angina) and/or coronary revascularization (PCI/CABG).

RECENT FINDINGS

Thirty-one articles are included in this review. Overall, caregiver distress is low to moderate, ranging from 6 to 67% of caregivers, and seems to dissipate over time for most caregivers. Interventions have demonstrated success in reducing the distress of caregivers of patients with CAD. Due to the heterogeneity in study samples, measurements used, and timing of assessments and programming, these results are far from definitive. Although evidence is accumulating, further advancement in caregiving science and clinical care is required to adequately understand and respond to the needs of caregivers throughout the patient's illness trajectory.

Relationship Between Family Caregiver Burden and Medication Adherence in Patients with Mechanical Valve Replacement: A Structural Equation Model

BACKGROUND

Oral anticoagulant is a necessary long-term treatment after mechanical valve replacement (MVR), and medication adherence has a great impact on patients with MVR. Although family caregiver burden is negatively correlated with medication adherence, little is known about the underlying mechanism.

PURPOSE

To test whether family caregiver burden influences medication adherence through post-traumatic growth or medication literacy in patients with MVR.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 206 patients after MVR were included in this cross-sectional study from July 2021 to December 2021. Data regarding medication adherence, family caregiver burden, post-traumatic growth, and medication literacy were collected by questionnaires. Data were analyzed through SPSS, and pathway analysis was conducted by using AMOS, based on the bootstrapping method.

RESULTS

Post-traumatic growth was positively associated with medication adherence (r = 0.284, P < 0.05). Post-traumatic growth independently mediated the association of family caregiver burden on medication adherence [β = 0.32, 95% confidence intervals: (-0.016, -0.008)]. The mediated effect value for post-traumatic growth was 0.07, accounting for 24.14% of the total effect. The model's fit indices were adequate.

CONCLUSION

The mediating effect of post-traumatic growth between family caregiver burden and medication adherence existed in patients with MVR. Interventions considering post-traumatic growth may be useful to increase medication adherence and improve patient rehabilitation.

The Impact of Caregiving Burden on Mental Well-Being in Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery Caregivers: The Mediatory Role of Perceived Social Support

An increase in caregiver burden and a decrease in social support have both been identified as predictors of poor caregiver psychological distress. However, little is known about the role of these factors in coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) caregivers. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether change in perceived social support from pre to post surgery mediated the relationship between change in caregiver burden and caregiver depressive symptoms and subjective well-being post surgery. A sample of 101 caregivers of elective CABG patients were assessed 28 days before and 62 days after patients' surgery. Caregivers completed the Oberst Burden Scale, the Enhancing Recovery in Coronary Heart Disease (ENRICHD) Social Support Instrument, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Control, Autonomy, Self-Realisation, and Pleasure (CASP-19) scale. Simple mediation analyses showed that change in social support significantly mediated both the relationship between change in caregiver burden and post-surgery depressive symptoms (unstandardised β = 0.041, 95% CI (0.005, 0.112)) and the relationship between change in caregiver burden and post-surgery subjective well-being (unstandardised β = 0.071, 95% CI (0.001, 0.200)). Psychological interventions aimed at the CABG caregiver population should promote social support to deal with the increase of caregivers' tasks and demands after the patients' surgery.

Assessment of caregiver burden in patients undergoing in- and out-patient neurosurgery

The objective of this study is to describe the caregiver burden, as well as the financial burden among caregivers after inpatient and outpatient neurosurgical patients. In this single center, observational study, adult patients undergoing elective inpatient or outpatient neurosurgery (supratentorial tumor resection or lumbar microdiscectomy) and his/her caregiver were recruited for the study. Bakas Caregiving Outcome Scale (BCOS) was used to assess caregiver burden and data was collected from preoperative period until post-operative day (POD) 30. Cost burden was assessed by a cost diary from day of surgery till POD 7. Forty-eight patient-caregiver pairs (21 inpatient craniotomies, 7 outpatient craniotomies, and 20 outpatient microdiscectomies) completed the study. BCOS values were in the negative impact range (<60) on POD1 in craniotomy group and improved to positive impact range (>60) after POD3. Median BCOS score remained at 60 in outpatient microdiscectomy. 56% of caregiver had at least 1 day of loss of income and 20% lost income throughout first 8 days. Median Cost (in Canadian dollars) associated with caregiving ranged from C$57 to C$250 amongst different groups. We concluded that caring for patients after craniotomy is psychologically demanding which leads to an increase in caregiver burden. In addition, there is a cost burden for the care givers in the form of missed workdays and additional direct expenses. Further studies are needed to recognize this problem and address the burden among the caregivers in the neurosurgical population.

"In the tube" following sternotomy: A quasi-experimental study

BACKGROUND

Traditionally, physical movement has been limited for cardiac surgery patients, up to 12-weeks post-operatively. Patients are asked to use "standard sternal precautions," restricting their arm movement, and thereby limiting stress on the healing sternum.

AIM

To compare return to function, pain/discomfort, wound healing, use of pain medication and antibiotics, and post-operative length of hospital stay in cardiac surgery patients having median sternotomy who used standard sternal precautions or Keep Your Move in the Tube movement protocols post-operatively.

METHODS

A quasi-experimental design was used (100 standard sternal precautions and 100 Keep Your Move in the Tube patients). Patients were followed in person or by telephone over a period of 12-weeks postoperatively. Outcomes were measured at day 7, as well as weeks 4, 8, and 12 weeks.

RESULTS

The majority of participants (77% in each group) were male and had coronary artery bypass graft surgery (66% standard sternal precautions and 72% Keep Your Move in the Tube). Univariate analysis revealed the standard sternal precautions group had lesser ability to return to functional activities than the Keep Your Move in the Tube group (p<0.0001) over time. This difference was minimized however, by week 12. Multivariate analysis revealed that increasing age, body mass index, and female sex were associated with greater functional impairment over time, but no difference between standard sternal precautions and Keep Your Move in the Tube groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Keep Your Move in the Tube, a novel patient-oriented movement protocol, has potential for cardiac surgery patients to be more confident and comfortable in their recovery.

Estimating Years of Life Lost Due to Cardiovascular Disease in Japan

BACKGROUND

In Japan, the burden associated with myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke as well as atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) generally is high. One key element in measuring disease burden is years of life lost (YLL). The aim of this study was to understand the burden of these diseases by estimating YLL at an overall disease level and average person-YLL (PYLL), a measure of disease burden also used in prior studies.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Because calculation of YLL and PYLL involves inputs such as disease prevalence, disease-related mortality by age, and general population mortality by age and sex, we searched public databases of disease surveillance to identify comprehensive Japanese-specific inputs. For our reference analysis, disease-specific prevalence and mortality were taken from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation Global Disease Burden study, and background mortality data were from the Japanese life tables published by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. The average age of patients with MI or stroke was 74 and 70 years, respectively. On average, men comprised 59% and 54% of the MI and stroke population, respectively. The disease-level burden of ASCVD (inclusive of MI, stroke, and peripheral artery disease) was 2,703,711 YLL in 2017. The patient-level burden was 11.99 PYLL for MI and 9.39 PYLL for stroke.

CONCLUSIONS

The burden of ASCVD, MI, and stroke in terms of premature mortality is substantial in Japan, both on a population disease level and an individual patient level.

Spousal role and caregiver burden in HIV affected families in Anhui Province, China

This study examined the burden experienced by various roles of family caregivers of people living with HIV (PLH), in particular spouses vs. non-spouses. A total of 475 family members of PLH were recruited from Anhui Province, China. Participants responded to a survey using the Computer Assisted Personal Interview method. The assessment collected data on demographic characteristics and their perceived caregiver burden, which was compared between spouses and non-spouses. Multiple regression models were built to identify factors associated with caregiver burden. About 64.4% of our study participants were female and the mean age was 42.1 years. Among various relationships to PLH, almost half reported being a spouse. Spouses reported significantly higher caregiver burden than non-spouses. In addition, older age and lower family income were significantly associated with higher level of caregiver burden. Among the subsample of spouses, significantly higher level of caregiver burden was identified among wives. Future studies should give special consideration to address the needs of female spouses in order to reduce their caregiver burden.