• Masateru Matsushita, Tomohisa Ishikawa, Asuka Koyama, Noriko Hasegawa, Naoko Ichimi, Hiroyuki Yano, Mamoru Hashimoto, Naoki Fujii, and Manabu Ikeda.
• Department of Neuropsychiatry, Faculty of Life Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan.
• Psychogeriatrics. 2014 Jun 1; 14 (2): 87-92.

BackgroundSense of coherence (SOC) is associated with a reduced risk of various health problems and is thought to be a major factor related to the ability to cope with stress. In the present study, we examined the association between caregiver burden and SOC among caregivers to persons with dementia.MethodsParticipants included 274 caregivers or family members of community-dwelling elderly dementia patients. To assess the cognitive function of patients, neuropsychological tests (e.g. Mini-Mental State Examination, Clinical Dementia Rating) were conducted by a clinical psychologist who was well trained in interviewing participants; the tests used a semi-structured interview protocol. Senior neurologists and psychiatrists also independently evaluated the dementia status of patients. To assess the SOC and caregiver burden, a social welfare counsellor asked questions from a 13-item version of the SOC scale and the short, eight-item Japanese version of the Zarit Caregiver Burden Interview (ZBI).ResultsAmong 78 caregivers of elderly subjects with cognitive impairment due to dementia, the ZBI score was significantly associated with SOC (r = -0.38, P = 0.001). Multiple regression analyses revealed that SOC scores (β = -0.42, P < 0.001) and Mini-Mental State Examination scores (β = -0.28, P = 0.009) were significantly associated with ZBI scores (F(2, 76)  = 10.51, P < 0.001). SOC was closely associated with personal strain in the ZBI (β = -0.41, P < 0.001; F(3, 75)  = 8.53, P < 0.001).ConclusionCaregivers with a strong SOC may be less prone to experiencing personal strain from their burden. These results suggest that reinforcement of SOC would contribute to reducing the personal strain.© 2014 The Authors. Psychogeriatrics © 2014 Japanese Psychogeriatric Society.

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