Quality of Life and Burden in Caregivers of Patients with OCD: A Scoping Review

Aim: This scoping review aimed to synthesize the quality of life (QoL) and perceived burden among caregivers of patients with Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Background: The QoL and burden among caregivers of patients with OCD is an important but under-researched topic, given that OCD can significantly impair the QoL of both patients diagnosed with OCD and their caregivers. Method: A scoping review approach was used to identify articles published in peer-reviewed journals between the years 2010–2024. The search yielded a total of 511 articles from 5 databases, namely, Science Direct, PsycInfo, PubMed, JSTOR, and Google Scholar. Ten articles that fit the inclusion criteria were selected. All the articles followed a quantitative approach; the mean age of caregivers was approximately 48 years, the number of caregivers ranged from 50 to 120, and the majority of the articles had samples with more female caregivers, mostly spouses/parents of the patient. Results: The four themes derived through the synthesis included caregiver support priorities, illness trajectory and caregiver strain, detrimental caregiver response, and socioeconomic disparities and QoL. Conclusion & Implications: Synthesizing the existing literature can guide the development of evidence-based strategies to alleviate the burden among and enhance the QoL of caregivers.