Background: The majority of older persons in Lebanon live with their family, which provides the help and care required when their relative is functionally impaired. Knowing that taking care of an older impaired relative is considered a source of enrichment for the caregiver and an act of gratitude towards the older person in Lebanon. However, there are few formal resources to support these families. This study is informed by a theoretical framework of stress.
Objective: Identify the dimensions of the caring context related to the health of Lebanese family caregivers living with an older impaired relative.
Design: Exploratory correlational study.
Participants: Convenience sample (N=319) drawn from all the regions of Lebanon according to predetermined quotas on the basis of relative demographic weight and socio-economic class. The inclusion criteria are: aged 18 years or over; primary caregiver; provided help with at least one ADL or IADL once a week; lived with the older impaired person. 13.5% refused to participate in the study. The caregivers recruited were female (84%), adult children (48%) or spouses (22.6%) with a mean age of 46 years. Almost half of them reported a post-compulsory level of education and a low monthly household income and no medical coverage for 68% of them.
Methods: The data were collected during a face-to-face interviews with the caregivers in their homes.
Results: The results from regression analyses indicate that the degree of functional impairment, the frequency of depressive and disruptive behaviours of cared-for relative are linked to at least one of three caregiver health indicators (p<.01). Also, caregiver cognitive appraisal of these stressors is associated with either role strain or feeling of helplessness (p<.05). The informal emotional support received by caregivers is positively related to well-being (p<.001), whereas interpersonal conflicts with family and friends diminish caregiver well-being and increase role strain (p<.001). Sufficiency of emotional support received is negatively associated with role strain (p<.001).
Conclusion: Many stressors proved associated with one or other of the health indicators under study and the resources emerged as significant factors related to caregiver's health.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2005.11.034 | DOI Listing |
BMC Med
January 2025
Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Background: Since older adults spend significant time in their neighborhood environment, environmental factors such as neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage, high racial segregation, low healthy food availability, low access to recreation, and minimal social engagement may have adverse effects on cognitive function and increase susceptibility to dementia. DNA methylation, which is associated with neighborhood characteristics as well as cognitive function and white matter hyperintensity (WMH), may act as a mediator between neighborhood characteristics and neurocognitive outcomes.
Methods: In this study, we examined whether DNA methylation in peripheral blood leukocytes mediates the relationship between neighborhood characteristics and cognitive function (N = 542) or WMH (N = 466) in older African American (AA) participants without preliminary evidence of dementia from the Genetic Epidemiology Network of Arteriopathy (GENOA).
J Prev Alzheimers Dis
January 2025
1Florida Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
Background: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a clinical diagnosis representing early symptom changes with preserved functional independence. There are multiple potential etiologies of MCI. While often presumed to be related to Alzheimer's disease (AD), other neurodegenerative and non-neurodegenerative causes are common.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Prev Alzheimers Dis
January 2025
Geriatrics Department, Fernand Widal Lariboisière University Hospital, GHU APHP.Nord, Paris, France; Paris-Cité University, Inserm U1144, Paris, France; Paris-Cité University, Inserm U1153, Paris, France.
Background: The use of cerebrospinal (CSF) biomarkers in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been gaining interest in clinical practice. Although their usefulness has been demonstrated, their potential value in older patients remains debated.
Objectives: To assess whether knowledge of the results of CSF AD biomarkers was associated with the same gain in diagnostic confidence in older adults > 80 than in younger patients.
BMC Pediatr
January 2025
Department of Psychology, University of South Dakota, 414 E. Clark St, Vermillion, SD, USA.
Background: Competing definitions of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been proposed by ICD-11 and DSM-5; it is unclear which diagnostic model works best for children and adolescents. Although other studies have predicted the impact of these models by approximating the criteria using older measures, this study advances the research by comparing measures designed to assess ICD-11 and DSM-5 criteria in hurricane-exposed youth. This study evaluates ICD-11 and DSM-5 (both the standard and preschool-age) diagnostic models by identifying diagnostic rates, evaluating diagnostic concordance, investigating the predictive value of constructs associated with PTSD (demographics, disaster threat and exposure, functional impairment), and examining model fit.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur Geriatr Med
January 2025
Institute for Health Development, Medical School of Nantong University, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, 20 Xisi Road, Nantong, 226001, China.
The aim of this study is to investigate the association between four phenotypes of sarcopenia/obesity in older individuals and functional disability, malnutrition, and all-cause mortality. This study is a cross-sectional study, survival is 3 years. A total of 487 Chinese older adults were included with 283 (58.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!