Evaluation of quality of life, sleep and psychosocial factors in caregivers of individuals with Down Syndrome.
Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate quality of life, sleep quality, and symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress in caregivers of individuals with Down Syndrome. Methods: There is an increasingly discussed need in the scientific community to shift attention from disease to patient. The humanization of health care and attention in health has given rise to the disease / patient / caretaker triad. This caregiver can be both a health professional and one who stays at home caring for loved ones, often compromising their own health. Twenty caregivers participated in this study. The inclusion criteria was to fill out the following validated questionnaires in the portuguese language: Quality of Life Questionnaire (SF-36), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS-21). This research is linked to a main project that obtained FAPES research assistance and approval by CEPH ICT - UNESP (CAAE: 64173616.4.0000.0077). Results: In the analysis of the data the results found in the SF-36 showed that there is quality of life among the caregivers and that the pain domain and general health status were the ones that presented the lowest means, 53.50 and 52.40 points respectively. PSQI showed that 5% of the caregivers presented good sleep quality, 60% had poor sleep quality and 35% had some sleep disorder. In the DASS-21 the average of the anxiety, stress and depression scales were 4.70; 7.20 and 4.25 points respectively, showing that the stress state is the most prevalent among the caregivers studied. Conclusions: The questionnaires revealed some important aspects about the physical and emotional health of the caregivers of patients with Down Syndrome. The need for attention to these people becomes critical to their health process and the patient's own.