title: Frontotemporal dementia: the impact of patient behavioral symptoms on the physical and mental health of family caregivers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Providing informal support to someone with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) could be very stressful. Clarifying the relationship between patient behavioral problems and caregiver health could spur future research on effective symptom management strategies.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-one FTD family caregivers participated in a postal survey.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patient symptom severity was negatively associated with caregiver mental health (r = -0.26, p < 0.05) but not significantly associated with caregiver physical health. In a regression analysis, caregiver emotional distress from patient behaviors made a statistically significant contribution to caregiver mental health, explaining approximately 10% of its variance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study underscores the importance of focusing on FTD caregivers' perceived emotional distress from patient behavioral problems and ensuring they are getting the appropriate support they need.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, Dominican University of California, San Rafael, Calif., USA.
authors.forename: Cindy C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Margaret I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Wallhagen
keywords: Caregiver mental health; Caregiver physical health; Emotional distress; Frontotemporal dementia; Patient behavioral symptoms