Cultural aspects in dementia: differences in the awareness of Brazilian caregivers.
OBJECTIVE
To explore differences in disease awareness in participants of a psychoeducational group designed for Latin American caregivers of people with dementia.


METHODS
We assessed participants of a group developed at an outpatient unit for Alzheimer's disease. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyze differences in the caregivers' reports.


CONCLUSIONS
The participants, mostly spouses and daughters, presented moderate caregiver burden and different levels of awareness (aware, partially aware, or unaware). Disease awareness and the development of coping strategies were influenced by familism, religiosity, and duty. Becoming a caregiver was considered positive in some cases, due to religious convictions and beliefs related to the importance of caregiving. Caregiver unawareness may reflect an attempt to maintain integrity of the patient's identity.


CONCLUSIONS
Our data allow some comparisons across cultures, which may be valuable in assessing the influence of different psychosocial environments on the knowledge about dementia.
Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Raquel L
RL
Santos
Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Maria F B de
MF
Sousa
Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Ana C
AC
Ganem
Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Thais V
TV
Silva
Center for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Marcia C N
MC
Dourado