Overburden of informal caregivers of older adults with Post-COVID Syndrome.

OBJECTIVES

to assess the burden of informal caregivers of older adults with post-COVID syndrome and analyze its association with variables regarding older adults and caregivers.

METHODS

a cross-sectional study conducted with 75 older adults with post-COVID syndrome and caregivers. Clinical, functional, cognitive, and psychological measures were used to assess older adults. Psychological and burden measures were used for caregivers using Zarit Burden Interview. Descriptive statistics, Spearman's correlation, and univariate and multiple linear regression were used.

RESULTS

most caregivers (67%) reported burden, with 16% experiencing high burden, 31% experiencing moderate, and 20% experiencing mild burden. In multivariate analysis, caregiver burden was associated with frailty (p=0.022), older adult depression (p=0.022), and caregiver depression (p<0.001). Variables explained 37% (p<0.001) of variance in the total Zarit Burden Interview score.

CONCLUSIONS

caregiver burden for older adults with post-COVID syndrome was associated with factors about older adults and their caregivers, highlighting the need for interdisciplinary support.