Risk and Protective Factors for PTSD in Caregivers of Adult Patients with Severe Medical Illnesses: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Caregivers of severely ill individuals often struggle to adjust to new responsibilities and roles while experiencing negative psychological outcomes that include depression, anxiety and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This systematic review aims to outline potential risk and protective factors for the development of PTSD in caregivers of adult subjects affected by severe somatic, potentially life-threatening illnesses. Twenty-nine studies on caregivers of adult patients affected by severe, acute, or chronic somatic diseases have been included. Eligibility criteria included: full-text publications reporting primary, empirical data; PTSD in caregivers of adult subjects affected by severe physical illnesses; risk and/or protective factors related to PTSD; and English language. Specific sociodemographic and socioeconomic characteristics, besides the illness-related distress, familiar relationships, exposure characteristics, coping style, and support, were identified as relevant risk/protective factors for PTSD. The review limitations are the small number of studies; studies on different types of diseases; studies with same samples. It is crucial to consider factors affecting caregivers of severely ill adult patients in order to plan effective intervention strategies aimed at reducing the risk of an adverse mental health outcome and at enhancing the psychological endurance of this population.

Keywords: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS); carers; mental health burden; relatives; significant others.

Figure 1

PRISMA flowchart of the study selection process. PRISMA, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses; PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; PTSS, Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms.