Impact of caregiving burden on family caregivers of older adults with chronic diseases

Objective With the worldwide aging population, chronic diseases are increasing, resulting in growing dependency on informal caregivers. Caregiver burden, a complex stress constituting physical, psychological, social and financial strains, is one of many public health problems. Despite its importance, few studies have been conducted on the prevalence and predictors of caregiver burden in Saudi Arabia. This study aims to address this gap by evaluating the impact of caregiving burden of family members who take care of older relatives with chronic diseases. Methods Family caregivers for older adults were enrolled in a cross-sectional study in the Al-Baha region of Saudi Arabia. A structured questionnaire incorporating the Zarit Burden Interview was used to collect data, including demographic and caregiving characteristics. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages and chi-square, and inferential testing were used to predict caregiver burden using SPSS. Results About one-third of caregivers had a moderate-to-high burden, with 36.36% reporting mild to moderate burden and 27.27% high burden. Bivariate analyses indicated that caregiver gender, hours of caregiving, and family support were significantly associated with burden (p < 0.05). Female caregivers and those providing 2–3 hours of care per day reported higher burden. Caregivers with low family support were more likely to experience high burden (51.9%) compared with those with high support (11.2%). However, multivariable ordinal logistic regression revealed that relationship to the care recipient was the only independent predictor of caregiver burden (OR = 22.48, 95% CI = 4.09–123.46, p < 0.001), whereas gender, age, education, marital status, and occupation were no longer significant. Conclusion Family caregivers of older adults with chronic diseases in Al-Baha experience substantial burden, particularly immediate family members closely involved in care. Burden is associated with both caregiving intensity and family support. Targeted interventions to support close family caregivers are warranted. Given the cross-sectional design, findings indicate associations rather than causality; longitudinal studies are needed to explore the psychological impact of sustained caregiving.