title: Factors Associated with Caregiver Burden in Dementia: 1-Year Follow-Up Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Dementia symptoms (cognitive function, daily-living function, and neuropsychiatric symptoms) become more serious over time, which is likely to increase caregiver burden. The aim of this study is to investigate which dementia-related symptoms, and how the progression of these symptoms, have influenced caregiver burden during a 1-year follow-up assessment.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 110 patients with dementia were assessed for their cognitive function, daily-living function, and neuropsychiatric symptoms. Caregivers were assessed for their caregiver burden. Bivariate analyses were conducted between caregiver burden and dementia patients' symptoms, in order to examine which particular symptoms were significantly associated with caregiver burden at the baseline. A multiple regression analysis was then conducted with each significantly associated variable with a view to identifying determinants, influencing caregiver burden. Additionally, bivariate analyses were conducted between the changes in caregiver burden and the changes in patients' symptoms, to investigate which patient variable could best describe caregiver burden from baseline to the 1-year follow-up. A multiple regression analysis was conducted with each significantly-associated change in symptom, in order to identify determinants that influence a change in caregiver burden.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as irritability, aberrant motor-behavior, delusions and disinhibition were found to be significant predictors of caregiver burden at baseline, according to multiple regression analysis. In addition, changes in neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as delusions, agitation and memory-related functioning in daily-living significantly predict a change in caregiver burden.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results demonstrate that neuropsychiatric symptoms and memory impairment in daily-living functions are significant predictors of an increase in caregiver burden.
authors.affiliation: Center for Clinical Research, Samsung Biomedical Research Institute, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Sang Hong
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Shim
authors.affiliation: Center for Clinical Research, Samsung Biomedical Research Institute, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Hyo Shin
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Ji Hae
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Center for Clinical Research, Samsung Biomedical Research Institute, Seoul, Republic of Korea.; Department of Psychiatry, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Doh Kwan
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Kim
keywords: Caregiver burden; Cognitive function; Daily-living function; Dementia; Neuropsychiatric symptoms